It’s no secret that the NBA All Star game isn’t what it used to be. Long ago, fans stopped caring about watching the best players in the League get together and see whether the East or West can commit to less defense, which usually ends up with some team scoring 160 and only winning by four. To be honest, it’s actually not that far from what the NBA regular season looks like these days anyway. Regardless, there hasn’t been a whole lot that’s worked to make a glorified talent showcase worth the time and effort to fans – or players for that matter. And that’s without even considering the decline of the slam dunk contest, which basically has to rely on G-League players to make it work.
But the NBA has announced this year’s all-star game will lean into a hot, popular theme to become more relevant. And that theme is nationalism. Or more specifically, the idea of American excellence. See this year, the game, or games really, will be US against the world. There will be two all-American teams of at least eight players and one team of players from outside the US. That ratio approximates the actual ratio of NBA players. So theoretically, it should be relatively easy to build three teams of that constitution. There’s a fairly complex system by which players are chosen, and how they add more to make sure they have enough of each address. The games themselves are a little more complicated than it feels like it needs to be. It’s some systems of short, round robin games between the three, when by the end two teams will play a final 12-minute period for the title. However it goes, it’s supposed to last about as long as a normal game. And I suppose because of the shorter stanzas and fewer subs and elimination format, perhaps everyone might play with just a bit more intensity.
The theme for this year didn’t come out of nowhere, nor is it some kind of directive from the federal government – at least not that I know of. Beyond the obvious, the NBA is trying to pig tail the broadcast of the Winter Olympics. In fact, this game will air right around the midpoint of the Games, and might come right after an American hockey match. So if you’re already whipped up on the USA, there’s no reason to change out of red, white, and blue. Just think of the NBA as a thru line of global sports warfare. And since NBC has finally recaptured to rights to broadcast the NBA, you won’t have to switch your dial once to remain fiercely loyal to the stars and stripes.
Of course, this new format reveals more than the League’s interest in leaning into our national impulse. Or about some synergy between the Olympics and American professional sports, which are fairly aligned already. What’s interesting is the global dynamic in the current NBA, a construct that goes far beyond a ratio of American citizens to global visitors – although it should be remembered that one NBA club does play across our northern border. The fact is, while we like to think of basketball and certainly our professional product the NBA as a distinctly American product promoting American excellence, the current realities may suggest otherwise. For example, the past seven MVP winners were not American. Prior to that, there were only four times a non-American won since the 1950s, when they launched the award. They’re winning scoring titles, multiple seats on all-NBA teams, and, as you likely know, are significant parts of the NBA draft. And these are some of our favorite players – Wemby, Luka, Jokic – not only great athletes, but increasingly the faces of the game. Where it once felt like a big risk to pick a non-US player, someone you may have only seen on video tape, now it’s irresponsible if you don’t scour the globe before settling for some freshman out of Kentucky. It may sound naïve, but the NBA is global. And there’s not a tariff policy that’s likely to change that, although you never know.
So, when the NBA decides to place America vs. the world, don’t assume this is simply to lean into our nativist instincts. It wouldn’t be all that surprising to see the team without US Passports getting as much love from fans as the two that do. And why this All Star game, and the League, isn’t what it used to be.
Keith Strudler is the Dean of the College of Communication and Media at Montclair State University. You can follow him at @KeithStrudler.
The views expressed by commentators are solely those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the views of this station or its management.
