Tag: NBA All-Star Game

Q&A: Tyrese Maxey on his first All-Star Weekend, Kevin Durant’s praise and more

“I’m able to channel it because it’s real joy,” Tyrese Maxey told For The Win.

Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey is enjoying his best professional season yet and just made his first appearance in the NBA All-Star Game.

The 23-year-old former Kentucky standout is having a breakout season and has emerged as a second star alongside Joel Embiid for Philadelphia. He was chosen to represent the Eastern Conference after averaging a career-high 25.7 points and 6.4 assists per game.

While he was in Indiana for the festivities, Maxey received deserved praise from many around the league, including Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant, who said the guard could eventually become one of the faces of the NBA.

For The Win chatted with Maxey on Saturday to discuss his time at All-Star Weekend, his goals for the remainder of the season and more.

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.

A genius solution to fix the NBA All-Star Game after the awful 2024 edition

Here’s how the NBA can increase competitiveness and reduce injury risk all at once.

The NBA All-Star Game hit a low point this year, which is saying a lot because it’s been bad for awhile. But this might’ve been rock bottom.

There was no defense, players acted too cool to care and the final score was 211-186. 211!

Adam Silver has to do something to save the league’s showcase event, and I have a suggestion. If players are too cool to go hard in a team game, the NBA should make it less of a team game. Force players to put a little more pride on the line by going to a 1-on-1 and 3-on-3 tournament. Let me explain how it would work:

There are 12 players on each team, so the first round would be six 1-on-1 games in each conference for a total of 12 games. And you set a low number to win like seven, so the games don’t drag on for too long. Once that round is over, it’s halftime.

Then, for the second half, with it down to six players in each conference, you go to a 3-on-3 semifinals. The 3-on-3 team to advance from each conference advances to the championship round, and you name an MVP from the winner of that game.

And that’s it. I guarantee players go harder for that, because there’s nowhere to hide. It’s also not a full-court game, so there’s less risk for injury. Make it happen NBA.

@forthewintok

The NBA All-Star Game hit a new low in 2024, but @pgprincej has a suggestion to fix it #nba #nbaallstar

♬ OK – Flight School & Zai1k

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Warriors’ Steph Curry scores 16 points off bench in NBA All-Star Game

The Golden State Warriors point guard dropped 16 points in his 10th appearance in the NBA All-Star Game.

After knocking off Sabrina Ionescu in the first NBA vs. WNBA 3-point competition on Saturday night in Indiana, Steph Curry suited up for his 10th appearance in the NBA All-Star game.

Curry came off the bench for the first time in the All-Star game, scoring 16 points on 6-of-17 shooting from the field with eight assists and five rebounds in 26 minutes.

The Warriors’ veteran point guard showed a wide variety of skills on Sunday night, including multiple triples and smooth handling. Curry drilled four 3-pointers. Curry also nearly put away a lob from Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns.

Via @warriors on X:

Despite Curry’s 16 points off the bench, the Western Conference All-Star got blown out by the Eastern Conference 211-186. Damian Lillard was named All-Star game MVP for the second consecutive season, scoring 39 points with 11 made 3-pointers. Towns led all scorers with 50 points on 23-of-35 shooting from the field.

This post originally appeared on Warriors Wire! Follow us on Facebook and X! 

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What are the highest scoring NBA All-Star games in league history?

The 2024 NBA All-Star Game set the record for the highest combined scoring total at halftime in All-Star Game history. 

The 2024 NBA All-Star Game set the record for the highest combined scoring total at halftime in All-Star Game history.

During the first half, the Eastern Conference scored 104 points while the West scored 89. For comparison, that means the East scored more points in one half than they did in the entire game in four consecutive years between 1953 and 1956.

How does this massive scoring performance between the two teams at the All-Star Game compare to other high marks in league history, though? Of course, the final score (211-186) took the pole position.

After returning to the old format of East vs. West and removing the Elam ending, all records broke. This wasn’t exactly a surprise considering even before 2024, nine of the highest-scoring NBA All-Star Games had occurred within the last 10 seasons.

Here are the updated highest-scoring totals that the NBA has ever seen in an All-Star Game:

NBA All-Star rosters: Here is the full list for the 2024 game (with injury replacements)

This is who will represent the West and the East in Indianapolis.

The 2024 NBA All-Star Game will return to the conference rivalry format and we now know which players will represent the East and West.

Although we already knew the starters after they were announced late last month, seven more players from each conference got the call that they will head to Indianapolis for the game on Feb. 18 as well.

The captains (LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo) remain the same as last year but this year, it is just an honorary distinction. They are denoted below in bold.

[gambcom-standard rankid=”3011″ ]

Injured places are indicated with a strikethrough for their name and injury replacements are indicated with an asterisk.

Otherwise, here’s the full list of East and West All-Stars for you to consult:

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Tyrese Haliburton’s NBA All-Star Game outfit made fans think he looked like Cookie Monster

Tyrese Haliburton genuinely looked like he stole this look from Cookie Monster.

Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton was one of the biggest stars of the NBA’s All-Star Weekend in Indiana.

Haliburton, who impressed some folks with his performance in the 3-point contest and skills competition on Saturday night, has had a very memorable few days in Indianapolis.

When he arrived for the actual All-Star Game on Sunday, however, he made a bold fashion decision that caused some waves. (Note: This is not the first time that his outfits have made waves of late.)

RELATED: Tyrese Haliburton on entering All-Star Weekend in an Indy car, the 3-point contest and more

The 23-year-old shared a heartwarming moment with a fan when he arrived.

Haliburton was wearing a nice suit and tie but fans couldn’t ignore the blue fabric on his blazer and pants that resembled the “fur” associated with Cookie Monster from Sesame Street:

Mac McClung won the 2024 NBA Slam Dunk Contest (again) and these were all the best photos

Mac McClung has officially made history, winning the NBA Slam Dunk Contest in back-to-back seasons.

Mac McClung has officially made history, winning the NBA Slam Dunk Contest in back-to-back seasons.

The high-flying G League guard took home the honors after an impressive performance, which included dunking over Shaquille O’Neal, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indiana. McClung beat out Celtics forward Jaylen Brown, Heat rookie Jamie Jaquez Jr. and Knicks forward Jacob Toppin.

Here were the best photos of the night in which McClung was once again crowned champ:

Fans criticized refs for allowing 3-point contest participants to shoot with their feet on the line

If fans are betting on who wins, these rules need to get enforced.

For the second year in a row, Damian Lillard won the NBA’s 3-point contest. But it didn’t come without its moments of controversy.

Even after the competition was over and Lillard was crowned champion, the Bucks star point guard acknowledged that the refs were not exactly showing a lot of due diligence during the competition.

He said that while he saw referees on the court, he noticed that they weren’t enforcing the rules of the contest.

While the participants may have found themselves a bit distracted by the fancy LED court at Lucas Oil Stadium, the refs had more responsibility to not count the shots that were taken while players had their feet on the line.

Especially if fans are betting on who wins this competition, long 2-pointers shouldn’t count and these rules need to be enforced.

Fans love the cool LED court the NBA is using for All-Star Weekend in Indiana

This court definitely looks AWESOME.

The NBA showcased new technology with an LED court for All-Star Weekend in Indiana and it was hard to not notice this innovation.

While it was unclear beforehand how fans would react to the new look for the festivities, it didn’t take long for fans to immediately fall in love with what they saw at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

Even though we won’t get to see the All-Star Game played on these fancy courts this year, fans seemed impressed with what the LED courts could do to entertain them during the festivities.

RELATED: The NBA unveiled a jaw-dropping LED court for All-Star Weekend and the future is here

Q&A: Dominique Wilkins on the state of the NBA’s dunk contest, underrated players and more

Basketball Hall of Fame forward Dominique Wilkins is one of just six players to have multiple wins in the NBA’s Slam Dunk Contest.

Basketball Hall of Fame forward Dominique Wilkins is one of just six players to have multiple wins in the NBA’s Slam Dunk Contest.

Wilkins, a nine-time All-Star and former NBA scoring champion who was honored as one of the 75 greatest players in league history, will return to the city where he first won the NBA’s Slam Dunk Contest in 1985. This time, he returns as a judge.

While star players like Wilkins rarely compete in the NBA’s AT&T Slam Dunk Contest these days, the “Human Highlight Film” told For The Win that he was pleased to see a top-tier player like Jaylen Brown participate this year.

We touched on lots more during our recent conversation with Wilkins.

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.