The NBA is considering making another change to the All-Star Game format. Shams Charania of The Athletic reported on Friday that the league might scrap the current draft format and go back to Eastern Conference vs. Western Conference matchup once again.
Charania reports that the format change, among other concepts, was a point of discussion during the league’s recent Board of Governor and general manager meetings.
The league and NBA Players’ Association agreed to make changes to the All-Star Game in their most recent collective bargaining agreement. Reportedly, the changes might be implemented as soon as the 2023-24 season. The 2024 NBA All-Star weekend is set to take place in Indianapolis.
The NBA has been looking for ways to make the All-Star game more competitive in recent seasons. It made several changes in recent editions, including organizing a draft in which a player with All-Star fan votes from each conference would serve as a captain and draft a team from a pool of starters and reserves.
The draft concept was used in the last five editions of the All-Star game, seeing Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James serving as a captain in all of them. Prior to that, the league had used the West vs. East format since the inception of the All-Star game in 1951.
