NBA All-Star game scheduled for next year in Indianapolis in serious jeopardy

69th NBA All-Star Game
69th NBA All-Star Game

The NBA All-star game is one of the major highlights of the NBA season. Stars from both the eastern and the western conferences join hands to lock horns in a highly entertaining spectacle for the fans.

It it usually a really high scoring game as both the teams focus on scoring points and pulling up extravagant moves instead of playing defence. It's an event where players, former NBA legends and fans come together for a great experience.

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NBA All-Star Game 'unlikely to happen' in February in Indianapolis

Indiana Pacers president Rick Fuson has revealed that the 2021 NBA All-Star Game is "unlikely to happen" on Feb. 14, 2021 in Indianapolis as originally scheduled in a statement given to the media. It is unclear whether the event will be canceled or moved to a later date.

In his statement, the Indiana Pacers president was quoted saying

"We have been working with the NBA since 2017 to bring our fans and our city this world-class event, just as we did when we last hosted in 1985, while it appears All Star 2021 is unlikely to happen on Presidents' Day weekend, we are excited about continuing to collaborate with the NBA as we look to the future."

The NBA season was put on a hold by the organization on 11th March due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The league re-started in a bubble in Orlando, Florida, at Disney's ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex on July 30.

The league is expected to push back the start of next season to at least December, which ensures that the All-Star Game will also be moved to a later date. The league, however, has not announced how it will handle next season; the All-Star Game's fate will be part of those plans.

Since the restart of the NBA season in the Orlando bubble, the organization has taken strict measures to counter the Coronavirus. Rules and regulations like mandatory quarantine after entering the bubble and wearing of masks has helped the league in preventing the spread of Covid-19 in the NBA bubble.

Recently, the NBA had announced the latest round of results of Coronavirus testing. Of the 342 players tested for COVID-19 on the NBA campus since test results were last announced, zero players had returned confirmed with positive tests. This proves that the league has been successful in containing the Coronavirus in the NBA bubble and we could similar strategy being implemented for the next season.

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Edited by Evan Tiwari