A new iteration, a new possibility for teammate duels
In our brave new world with yet another series of overhauls to the NBA’s All-Star Game format, it is worth our time considering how Adam Silver’s premier mid-season event may impact the Milwaukee Bucks. For those who have reasonably decided to skip following along with the latest changes, here’s a quick summary of how the 2025 NBA All-Star Game will work:
- Rather than a single game with two teams of All-Stars, there will now be a “mini-tournament” featuring four teams
- Each team will have eight players—three of them will be pulled from the pool of 24 All-Stars
- The final team will be the group who wins the Rising Stars Challenge (i.e. the showcase of first- and second-year players)
- The aforementioned All-Star teams will be drafted by Shaquille O’Neal, Charles Barkley, and Kenny Smith on a TNT broadcast
- Games in the mini-tournament will not be the traditional four quarter format, but instead be a race to 40 points
- All-Star voting remains unchanged, as does the prize pool of $1.8 million which will be doled out to players depending on the final place of their team in the standings
That’s… a lot of new ideas! Whether they actually translate into a more compelling product will, as always, be in the eye of the beholder. All-Star Weekend has become something of a catch-all testing ground for a lot of the league’s wonky ideas and these shifts are in that same vein (remember the brief flirtations with the Elam ending?).
As far as how this may impact the Bucks we should note that previous iterations have allowed the leading vote-getter in each conference to “draft” his team from the All-Star class. If said captain had a teammate on the board for drafting he was certain to select him for his team (Giannis did this with Khris Middleton). Last year was a return to the more traditional East vs. West format, so Giannis didn’t have the chance to draft Dame. Should both Lillard and Antetokounmpo make it this time around (seems pretty likely to me), their fates as possible teammates or brief rivals will be decided by three television personalities. Something tells me the desire for entertainment will ultimately result in back-room deals that see teammates ending up on competing sides.
Now, are you ready for a deep cut? What if—stay with me here—the Bucks have someone make the Rising Stars rosters? Has Andre Jackson Jr. potentially made the leap to second-year relevancy that could send him to San Francisco? Well… looking at the rosters from last year’s edition, maybe as an injury replacement. The biggest hurdle being, of course, his relatively anemic counting stats. His insertion into and relative success in the starting lineup of a playoff contender could give him a boost, plus his style of chaotic play is entertaining in its own way.
Even if AJax doesn’t make the cut, that won’t mean a larger Bucks contingent is off the table entirely. Taurean Prince may be a leading three-point contest candidate (plus Dame defending his title), it isn’t too late for MarJon Beauchamp to enter the dunk contest, and Bango making an appearance is a foregone conclusion.
The final silver lining? Doc Rivers & Co. won’t be saddled with coaching responsibilities this go-around like they were on last second notice earlier this year.
We’ll keep an eye on voting developments now that it officially opened this morning and will close on January 20th, 2025 and update accordingly!