February Prediction – ASG gets poor reviews
I’m pretty sure I’m in the minority but I actually really enjoy the NBA All-Star game. I know you can probably find better defense at a 50 and over league at the local YMCA, but it’s still fun. I’m all for three and a half quarters of cool dunks, uncontested 3’s, and Russell Westbrook playing like it’s Game 7 of the NBA Finals punctuated by the last 6 minutes usually being pretty decent basketball.
As a fan of the All-Star game I’m willing to give the new rule changes a chance, but I’m keeping expectations low.
NBA.com breaks down the new changes but essentially the league decided the best way to save the All-Star game is by adding more math to it and taking away a traditional 4th quarter – that’s always fun, right? The first three quarters will each start 0-0 and go for 12 minutes and at the end of those three quarters, they’ll add 24 (in honor of Kobe) to the leading team’s score and that will be the target score – first team to hit that number wins the game.
I understand the goal. I love the idea of incorporating a Kobe tribute into the game but I don’t think this is the way to do it. The target score makes it feel more like a gimmick than a basketball game. And if you’ve ever watched an NBA All-Star game before you know that scoring 24 points will happen in the blink of an eye and the game will just end.
The NBA is also trying to get the players to play more defense which, in a perfect world, would be great. It’s not a perfect world though and they’re kidding themselves if they think these guys are going to go all out in the first three quarters. I think the defense will certainly be ramped up in the 4th, but didn’t they already do that?
I’ll keep an open mind and I really hope this adds a fun twist to the game, but I think the league is rolling the dice with these rule changes.