It will be “United States”. against the rest of the world”

The NBA announced on Tuesday night – in the early hours of Wednesday in Spain – that the new “All-Star” tournament will make its debut in its next edition, which will be held on Sunday. February 15 From next year.

The format will be somewhat complex: three teams – two made up of NBA stars and the third made up of stars from the rest of the world – will participate in an “all-against-all” format. There will be three 12-minute mini-matches, where each team will play against other competitors. The teams with the most wins will play a 12-minute fourth mini-game that will determine the winner. In the event of a draw in an All-vs-All match, the point difference will be calculated, which will help avoid sloppy play. Each team will have eight players.

Players born outside the United States make up 25% of the NBA’s total, and there are enough quality players to field a full twelve-player team. But perhaps the NBA didn’t want to leave out so many homegrown stars Trying to please American players and fans.

In reality, The Rest of the World team scares anyone. Among the possible quintet is that formed by Serbian Nikola Jokic, three-time league MVP and 2023 champion; And the Greek Giannis Antetokounmpo, the best player and champion of 2021 twice: Canadian Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the best player and champion of last year; Slovenian Luka Doncic, the best rookie of the year 2019 and one of the most prominent players in this sport; Or Frenchman Victor Wimpanyama, last year’s Rookie of the Year who aims to be the league’s “capo” with unknown talent and athleticism. But there are also other great players such as Turkish Alperin, Canadian Jamal Murray or German Franz Wagner.

Player selection will be the same as in previous years: the fans will choose the top ten stars and the remaining fourteen will be chosen by the coaches. If there are not enough Americans or players from the rest of the world to complete the teams, league commissioner Adam Silver will select players to fill them.

Format “United States.” “Against the Rest of the World” was something many fans dreamed of, especially outside the borders of the United States and especially with the growing weight in the league. None of the seven best players in the NBA were born in the United States. (Including Joel Embiid, who was born in Cameroon, but represents the United States in international competitions.)

This change comes after countless attempts by the NBA to make the All-Star Game attractive, which has gone from being an expected event on the sports calendar to an event. An unbearable sight. The lack of competitive tension and lack of defense turned the game into a three-point drill and dunk contest. The last few minutes were barely played with intensity, but that didn’t improve the product much either.

In recent years, the NBA has tried several strategies to regain its luster: it has done away with — and then brought back — the traditional system of Eastern Conference players versus Western Conference players, eliminated the timer in the fourth quarter, imposed a goal-scoring system, or — last year — introduced a four-team lineup, including one of the rising stars.

Many were screaming for a confrontational “USA.” Against the rest of the world,” but the NBA did not dare to do this until the middle of the last decade, through the “junior” game, which did not receive much attention.

At last year’s “All Star,” some international stars insisted on how good the format was that the NBA had finally approved. “I would love to,” he said. Antetokounmpo“It will be the most interesting and exciting format.” He thought the same thing Wimbayanma: “There will be more intention, there will be more pride, more things at stake.”

The NBA may have decided to make this move after looking at what happened last year with the All-Stars in another professional league, the NHL. After years without pain or glory, they created a quadrangular system between four countries with great traditions in the sport: Finland, Sweden, USA and Canada. The finals, between the United States and Canada, in the midst of US President Donald Trump’s trade war against northern neighbours, have turned the matches into a state affair, with fighting over anthems, battles – more than usual – between players and historical audience records.

It remains to be seen whether the NBA All-Star Championship meets expectations and brings to life an evening of basketball that has excited fans. Moreover, in a gesture for European fans, the schedule will be friendly: Los Angeles will play at two in the afternoon, and Madrid at eleven at night.