The NBA played its first “Captains” All-Star Game last night in Los Angeles, and it did not disappoint, with Team Lebron beating Team Stephen 148-145. It was the first All-Star Game ever since its creation in 1951 to not feature the East vs the West.
After high amounts of scrutiny from fans over the last couple of years that the game was not competitive, the league decided to change the All-Star Game format completely. Instead of it being East vs West, the top two vote earners from each conference would be named captains of their respective teams, and those captains would draft players from across the league. Lebron James and Steph Curry were named captains, and the draft was held in a private location.
As for the game itself, it went really well. Defense was being played, shots were contested, and fouls were called, unlike in previous All-Star games. Sure, it was not as competitive as a real NBA game, but it felt like the players at least tried, and that is a far cry from what happened in last year’s disaster of a game, where players were just chucking up three pointers like it was nobody’s business.
The game was close throughout, with Team Lebron leading by three with 13 seconds left in the game after coming back from 13 down earlier in the fourth. Team Stephen had the ball, but could not get a shot off as Team Lebron smothered Curry into the corner, forcing him to pass it to Demar Derozan, who could not get the shot off in time.
Lebron James was named MVP of the game with 29 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists.
Overall, I thought the game was fun to watch in general. You could tell players were having fun playing against each other and took the game seriously. The NBA should definitely continue with this All-Star format next year and beyond.