NBA All-Star Recreation more likely to have U.S. vs. World format in 2026: Stories – The New York Occasions

The NBA All-Star Recreation will probably function a brand new format in 2026, with a round-robin event consisting of two groups of U.S. gamers and one in every of worldwide gamers, in line with a number of studies.
Every workforce would have eight gamers, per the studies. The squads would play one another in 12-minute quarter video games, according to ESPN.
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The NBA’s competitors committee reviewed the proposed format and had a constructive response to it, per studies. The league has not finalized the format.
In April, NBA commissioner Adam Silver and president of league operations Byron Spruell stated the league and NBC, its new broadcast associate, have been discussing an “international competition” for the next All-Star Game, which is about for Feb. 15 on the LA Clippers’ Intuit Dome. The 2026 All-Star Recreation would fall in the course of NBC’s protection of the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.
NBC would transfer the All-Star Recreation from its conventional prime-time Sunday evening slot to a Sunday afternoon tip-off, and air Olympic protection earlier than and after the sport, in line with the Related Press.
In April, Silver acknowledged the 2026 All-Star Recreation will probably be performed at Intuit two years earlier than Los Angeles hosts the 2028 Summer season Olympics. The Olympic basketball video games will even be performed on the Intuit Dome.
“I believe all of these elements, after they come collectively, it presents an unlimited alternative for us to do one thing with a world competitors as a substitute of the standard All-Star codecs that we’ve used,” Silver stated on the time.
The NBA’s consideration of a world All-Star format follows the NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off in February. The NHL held a world mini-tournament as a substitute of its annual All-Star Recreation, and the championship sport between the U.S. and Canada turned the most-watched non-Olympic hockey sport ever.
Roughly 25 % of present NBA gamers have been born outdoors of the U.S. For eight consecutive seasons, the NBA MVP has been awarded to a participant born outdoors the U.S., and at the very least 10 worldwide gamers have been chosen in each draft since 2010.
The NBA has not been afraid to tinker with its All-Star Recreation format. Final season, the league switched from a standard East versus West sport to a four-team event with three squads of All-Stars and a fourth of “rising stars,” or first- and second-year gamers.
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That event was criticized for in-game gimmicks and prolonged stoppages, and it drew poor scores, main Silver to name it a “miss.” It was the second-lowest-rated NBA All-Star Recreation, and viewership was down 13 % from the 2024 sport.
(Photograph of Kyrie Irving and Victor Wembanyama within the 2025 All-Star Recreation: Kyle Terada / Imagn Photos)
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Jenna West is a senior editor on The Athletic’s information workforce. Earlier than becoming a member of The Athletic, she served as a author and producer for Sports activities Illustrated’s nationwide information desk. Jenna is a graduate of Northwestern College.

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