It's safe to say that Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has a concern about the new NBA All-Star Game format.
The NBA has received plenty of criticism over the years because of the lack of competitiveness in the All-Star Game. In a bid to encourage the superstars to play harder, Commissioner Adam Silver and the league changed it to a U.S. vs. World format, in which two USA teams and one World team play against each other.
The three teams face each other in round-robin play, and the top two teams with the best records play in the championship.
According to James, however, he likes the East vs. West format. He also shared his problem with a U.S. vs. World system, noting that he's struggling to "figure out how that makes sense."
Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
"East-West is the tradition. It's been really good. I like the East and West format," James said while speaking to reporters on Sunday. "They're trying something, we'll see what happens. But it's U.S. vs. World. The world is gigantic over the U.S., so I'm trying to figure out how that makes sense."
For what it's worth, it's easy to see where James is coming from. Compared to previous years, there have been a lot more superstars from outside the U.S. today.
In fact, the starting unit for Team World features Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic, Victor Wembanyama, Deni Avdija and Jamal Murray. Had Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Giannis Antetokounmpo not been injured, they would have started, meaning Team World would have had three MVP winners in the past seven years.
It is interesting to note that Golden State Warriors star Steph Curry recently offered a solution for how to make the NBA All-Star Game more competitive. According to Curry, a shorter game would probably help.
"Unfortunately, I can’t help this year because I’m not playing, but the only thing I can think of is shortening the game," Curry said when a reporter asked what the NBA can do to increase the competitiveness of the All-Star Game.
The Warriors guard admitted that it's "hard to replicate the intensity of a regular season game" because the stakes are just different and worlds apart. He then stated that a 40-minute game on an East vs. West format should be good for the All-Star Game.
It remains to be seen what the NBA will do about the All-Star Game moving forward, but if there's one thing Silver is known for, it's the fact that he's not afraid to experiment if it means elevating the game and the brand further.