After the sour taste of the entire event last year, serious questions were asked regarding the future of the All-Star Game and whether it was going to be a staple. Some fans even wished to do away with the format. However, a lot has changed in the year since in format, faces and location.
The Empty Arena Paradox
The 2026 Rising Stars tournament was held on Friday, featuring top rookies and sophomores, such as former Big 12 Freshman of the Year VJ Edgecombe, and a reunion in competition of the 2024 National Championship team: Donovan Clingan, Tristen Newton, Cam Spencer, and Rising Stars MVP of the previous year, Stephon Castle. With notable G League talent being involved in the competition, there was ample room for them to display their talent.
Then why, many wondered, was the arena reported to be over 95% empty?
The weekend was hosted at the Los Angeles Clippers’ home arena, the Intuit Dome, which caused prices to skyrocket. SeatGeek reported that prices for the entire weekend jumped near 50%. This makes the accessibility even worse than it was last year.
Often, a popular sentiment people like to throw out regarding these games is that people simply do not care and that there are better things to be doing in Los Angeles on a Friday night — but how can fans care if it costs $2,000 to see all of this young talent in person?
3-point and Skills Contest
Many critics believe that the removal of the skills challenge was a result of Victor Wembanyama and now former NBA veteran Chris Paul effectively cheating. No matter how funny the display was, it might have been the nail in the coffin for the contest as a whole, which was replaced by the Shooting Stars contest — a team-based event featuring current stars and former legends.
On the other hand, there was definitely some confusion in regard to the announcement of Damian Lillard participating in the 3-point contest, as the star had injured himself in the postseason prior. However, he joined Larry Bird and Craig Hodges as the only three-time winners in NBA history.
The media conversation: What counts as trying?
This year, media conversations around the All-Star Game sang its praises. As opposed to negative sentiment from the game last year, many praised it despite initial skepticism of the format. Some say that the game was needed, with high praise from the New York Times’ Athletic NBA Staff.
With the only real sour spot of the evening being the dunk contest, which has, more or less, begun to phase out of relevancy with stars not performing, a question comes to mind—is this what it looks like when players try?
Wembanyama, an up-and-coming basketball player, has promised to “deliver” on hopes of being the new face of the league. Generational talent aside, he, many agreed, was the sole saving grace of the weekend.
“I ain’t gonna lie,” Anthony Edwards, All-Star Game MVP said, “Wemby set the tone. He came out playing hard. Hard not to match that.”
Wembanyama may have been on the team that lost, appearing to be visibly frustrated afterwards, but his passion for the game is undeniable, and in his own words, “It’s a game I personally cherish — so being competitive is the least I can do.”
Conclusion: better than last year
The attitude around this year’s All-Star Game was more positive than the year before, perhaps having to do with the slow phasing out of the NBA on TNT crew alongside more positive-toned conversations around the game from the NBA-on-NBA crew and NBA on Amazon Prime.
A lot of the news around the weekend has little to do with the content of the game itself. However, there are always opportunities for growth — the next apparent being the cost and price of the fan experience.