Opinion: NBA needs an NHL-style tournament for their All-Star Game.
The Eastern All-Stars won 211-186 (Yeah, 211 points) over the Western All-Stars that fans complained over the product of the game.
211 points… That’s right, you read that right. 211 points were scored by the Eastern National Basketball Association All-Stars in their victory against the West. But while seeing a rare 200-point accomplishment seems exciting (Tyrese Haliburton picking up the legendary 2 to make it a 200-point game), many fans were in utter disbelief by the lack of defense, hustle, and just showman displays of how many threes they can drop in this game. It was 104-86 at the break. But how can we fix such a lousy All-Star Game weekend for the NBA? There are ways.
The NBA should try an NHL-style all-star game tournament where more defense is involved in the game and put some money on the line for the winners. There are 6 divisions in the NBA and there should be 3 games, determined by a random draw on who plays each other. Instead of 4 quarters of 12 minutes, make it 2 halves of 15 minutes. The highest scoring team from the first 3 games will get a bye to the championship while other 2 will compete in the semifinal for the championship game. The NBA should lay out some prize money for the winning team, maybe a $2,000,000 first place prize for the winners. $500,000 for the runner-up. $250,000 for 3rd place. All teams bowing out in the first round should get $100,000. The All-Star Championship Game should be a full 4-quarter game at 12 minutes apiece.
The NBA already has an in-season tournament which… I’ll tell you was a terrible idea… I seriously don’t know what Adam Silver was thinking but that has to be one of the dumbest ideas ever put out there. If fans are looking for a revamped All-Star Game for the league, this might just be the way to do it: An All-Star Game Tournament. All I saw in that game was showmanship, 3 point shots, no defense, players just walking around like zombies, and you know: Fans pay good money for a good product so why not give them one.
The National Hockey League, Major League Baseball, and Major League Soccer do it right. Why not do a change, National Basketball Association? After all, it seems that defense has gone out the window nowadays in basketball. Remember how scoring 100 points used to be super cool? Now it’s the norm.
Let’s fix the NBA All-Star Game, Adam Silver. Might be time.
