It may ignore things like traveling and palming the ball, but credit the National Basketball Association for knowing which buttons to push to save its All-Star Game.
Up until last year, the NBA All-Star Game had devolved into a spectacle of show and glitz so devoid of defense that it played like a cross between a dunk contest and a Harlem Globetrotters-Washington Generals game.
The 2017 showdown between the stars from the East and West Conferences ended with a final score of 192-182, leaving many of the paying fans with not only buyer’s remorse — the average ticket price was $2,000 — but also wondering exactly they had just watched.
With a slight twist in the selection process, though, a psychological element came into play among the competitors last year, and the All-Star Game became a game again.
No longer a pageant of fan-voted stars representing one conference against the other, the All-Star vote was a return to the old ways of pick-up games. The two best players — in this case, the two leaders in fan votes — took turns choosing players from any team in either conference to play for their teams.
On one side there was Team LeBron — for overall vote leader LeBron James — and on the other was Team Stephen, for Golden State’s Steph Curry, the No. 2 vote getter.
Getting the best players from around the league to join your side is a business model that Golden State has used to great success.
It also translated well to the All-Star proceedings, as last year’s game was a 148-145 squeaker that came down to the wire, with All-Stars actually moved to play some defense.
Flattering as it is to be voted by the fans onto an All-Star team, there’s something inherently more compelling about being selected by your peers to compete against other peers. The desire to justify their confidence — or to prove wrong those who passed on you — is considerable. Bragging rights are a powerful motivator.
It was said that during the 1992 Summer Olympic Games, when the U.S. “Dream Team” trampled the competition en route to the gold medal, the intra-squad scrimmages at the U.S. practices were as intensely competitive as an NBA Finals.
The second running of the new All-Star roster format is on display this Sunday night at Charlotte’s Spectrum Center. Team LeBron is back, as James once again garnered the highest vote total.
This time around, the other team captain receiving the second-highest total of votes is Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks.
The 6-11 “Greek Freak,” who plays like a point guard when he’s not dunking over opposing centers, has returned the Bucks to prominence and is the front-runner for most valuable player honors. Led by Antetokounmpo’s 27 points, 13 rebounds and six assists per game, the surprising Bucks have the best record in the league.
This is no small deal. It means that if the season ended today, they would enjoy home court advantage throughout the playoffs, which would greatly enhance a run at their first NBA title since 1971.
There lies the rub.
It’s great that Antetokounmpo is getting national exposure as one of the league’s premier players. Long on talent and short on ego, he is a rarity among NBA stars. When the All-Star Game is over, though, the Bucks will need him down the stretch of the wearying 82-game schedule.
They are a different team without him, as demonstrated in a recent matchup with Orlando. Antetokounmpo sat out the game with knee soreness, and the Bucks, despite playing at home, lost by 20 points to a Magic team seven games under .500 and going nowhere.
It’s a dilemma that speaks to the delicate balance that Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer must strike between winning as many games as possible and resting the regulars. In June, they don’t pick new sides.