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The NBA All-Star event was on full display this weekend. Coming in, the talks revolved around changes to the formats in multiple events.
It started with the Rising Stars Challenge on Friday, bringing in a team of G-League players and having them play a team of rookies and sophomores in the NBA.
The Skills Challenge on Saturday pitted three-man teams against each other in a three-event gauntlet. The team with the most points at the end of the three events was the winner.
Then on Sunday, the NBA All-Star captains drafted their teams live on TV. Successful changes are always difficult to predict. No one really knows if something is going to pop and people will like the new format.
So how was the 2023 All-Star weekend as a whole?
NBA All-Star Celebrity Game
This was easily the best celebrity game in the history of the All-Star weekend.
It had everything. Good basketball, athletic players and stars who took the game seriously. Normally, it looks like a horrible pick-up basketball game at the YMCA and it's unwatchable.
The game this year was electric. Lead changes, dunks, steals and competition.
At the buzzer, WWE Superstar The Miz launched a half court heave with his team trailing by three. Under the new rules, this shot would have counted as four points and his team would have won.
He sank the shot and everyone was going crazy. The refs then looked at the monitor and determined The Miz did not get the shot off in time. Team Dwyane Wade held onto a 81-78 victory.
Seattle Seahawks star wide receiver DK Metcalf dominated the game with 20 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks to win the MVP award.
Rising Stars Challenge
It would have been a bad sign if the celebrity game had been the highlight of the first day. Thankfully, the Rising Stars Challenge was awesome. The players took this very seriously and the product on the court reflected that.
Former NBA All-Stars Pau Gasol, Joakim Noah and Deron Williams drafted their rosters from a pool of first and second-year NBA players. Jason Terry coached a team made up of G-League players.
It was clear early on that the players on these teams wanted to win this event. They defended, made unselfish plays and ran offenses set up in practice. Having some players mic'd up also added an element that took the audience behind the scenes.
If players continue to attack this event with the same level of desire to win that was shown this year, the Rising Stars event will be a major highlight of the weekend.
Jose Alvarado was named this year's MVP after hitting a game-winning shot in the championship game.
Skills Challenge
The NBA continues to try and tweak the Skills Challenge competition. For the second year in a row, this was a team format competition that tested dribbling, passing and shooting.
As the opening event on Saturday, there aren't too many high expectations for this to wow viewers. They tried to add some flare with props on the court, but ultimately it fell flat.
The final round shooting competition was hard to watch. Barely anyone on any team could make a shot and the event ended with a sour taste. Going forward, if the NBA keeps the same format, they should start with the shooting competition and end with the relay because that was the most interesting part of the event.
Three Point Contest
This has evolved into the most anticipated event of the weekend. Amazing shooters like Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Damian Lillard and others have elevated this event to peak interest.
This year was no different.
The addition of a ball worth three points shot from deep range has been great for the event. People want to see the best shooters in the world put on a show and every year that's what happens in this event.
Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton scored 31 points in the first round. This put him in the finals with his Pacers teammate Buddy Hield and Damian Lillard, who had never won the event.
Hield went first and set the number to beat at 25. Lillard needed a flurry of threes from his final rack to beat Hield's number. "Dame Time" was activated and he hit the last shot in his rack to score 26.
26 was enough for Lillard to win the contest that he badly wanted to win.
Slam Dunk Contest
No one truly knew what to expect coming into this competition. The event has been on a steady decline and was the butt of jokes after 2022's horrible competition.
The NBA did something they'd never done before. They allowed a G-League player to compete in the competition.
Mac McClung was traded to the 76ers before the All-Star break and was signed on a two-way contract. McClung, known for his dunking, was allowed to compete in the contest.
His competitors included three NBA players, KJ Martin, Trey Murphy and Jericho Sims. Simply put, McClung stole the show this weekend.
He electried the entire arena with a flurry of dunks that earned him three perfect 50 point scores. NBA stars watching on the sidelines were routinely left with their jaws on the floor after each dunk.
It reminded everyone of what the Slam Dunk Contest used to be. Elite athletes putting on a show that only the best athletes in the world can do.
Hopefully the 2023 contest puts the Slam Dunk Contest back on the map and resusitates it back to a larger than life event.
NBA All-Star Game
After captains LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo drafted their teams on live TV, it was all downhill from there.
The All-Star game was horrible.
Nobody on the court cared about playing in the game. Luka Doncic was mic'd up and admitted he was okay with scoring two points and using the game as a cardio session.
The NBA switched the fourth quarter of the game to an "Elam Ending" format, which is a target score to reach without a time limit. In theory, this was used to create more competition in the game.
There was no desire in this All-Star game. Team Giannis beat Team LeBron 184-175.
Jayson Tatum took home the MVP award after posting a record 55 points using 10 made threes to get there. His teammate Donavan Mitchell added 40 points with eight made threes.
Normally, there is some excitement in the game. The only single moment of intrigue was when Boston Celtics teammates Tatum and Jaylen Brown went one-on-one against each other for a few possessions.
Other than that, the game was a snooze fest and was a black cloud over an otherwise incredible All-Star weekend.
It's really a shame too. Leaving Saturday night after a great three-point contest and electric dunk contest, the best players in the world had the opportunity to put a stamp on what could have been an amazing weekend.
Instead, they left people with less of a desire to watch the All-Star weekend than ever before.
Guess the Lakers players!
