2026 NBA All-Star Game was a success — right until it wasn’t
The 2026 NBA All-Star Game was a huge success – until it wasn’t.
The NBA’s new World vs. USA vs. USA format produced one of the most competitive All-Star Games of the last decade, until the aging and undefeated USA Stripes ran out of gas in their third game of the night, a 20-point loss to a younger and seemingly hungrier American team that went on to win the championship despite losing in its first game of the evening to the same team they beat to take the crown All-Star.
Confusing? Yes. Fun to watch? At times.
But predictable? Absolutely. The team of older players — featuring LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Kawhi Leonard — got off to a hot start, beating young American stars and the best of the international group before the engine sputtered and the wheels fell off with the championship on the line.
However, this will be enough. The league can refine its World vs. USA format to bring a better product to its All-Star Weekend.
The NBA Slam Dunk Contest, on the other hand, might be beyond repair. If the NBA is letting players half-heartedly attempt warm-up dunks during its biggest moment of the season, it might as well abandon the event and replace it with a high-profile King of the Court game.
No Knicks player reigned as king of the Intuit Dome’s All-Star basketball court on Sunday. Representing the Dominican Republic for Team World, Karl-Anthony Towns scored an early 10 points in his first game of the night, a performance that ended with Towns choosing to assist Jalen Duren in driving to the rim, leaving Scottie Barnes wide open for a game-winning three even though a layup from Duren would have left Team World with a chance to win it at the buzzer.
And Jalen Brunson only scored five points in his two games played on Sunday, even though the second game was over with the USA Stars taking a 12-1 lead.
At least the Knicks come away with some hardware, even if it’s not the All-Star MVP trophy. It went to Anthony Edwards even though it should have gone to Kawhi Leonard, who single-handedly sent Victor Wembanyama and Team World to 31 points on just two missed shots in the biggest game of the All-Star Round Robin.
Brunson agreed with several All-Stars’ assessment of Wembanyama, whose individual drive seems to have lit the fire for his competitors.
“I think Wemby is a leader and the way he carries himself is fantastic for this game,” Brunson said. “And I think he’s doing a great job, and you see what his impact is on and off the field around this game. He’s hurt doing what he’s doing.”
Instead of an All-Star trophy, Brunson, Towns and Knicks OG Allan Houston won the Shooting Stars competition Saturday, advancing through multiple rounds of shots from different parts of the court.
Yet on one possession, Brunson held the ball in his hands while Towns drove to the three-point line to guard it, a series predictably ending with a series of crossover moves and an open lane to the rim for Brunson with Towns behind with a smile on his face.
Asked about possession after the game, Brunson laughed and said scoring on his co-star was “easy.”
The NBA no longer needs to overhaul its All-Star Game. The league has found the basis for new iterations of its flagship event in the future. This saved the All-Star Game. Now is the time to save the Dunk Contest – or scrap it altogether.
