Report: Rules set for new pickup style NBA All-Star tournament

A year after arguably the worst All-Star game in NBA history, the league is set to make wholesale changes to make the annual exhibition affair more competitive. 

Last week, a report suggested that the All-Star Game will be converted into a tournament format between four separate teams of eight players each, the last of which will feature the winner of the Rising Stars Game. Now, additional details have emerged.

On Thursday, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported on the rules for the new four-team tournament that will be held in San Francisco on Feb. 16, 2025.

• Two semifinals will be played, pitting Team 1 against 3 and Team 2 versus Team 4. The first two teams to reach 40 points will advance.
• The finals will be played up to 25 points.
• All three games will be held on All-Star Sunday. 
• As is tradition, the fourth team, featuring only rookies or sophomores, will play the Rising Stars Game on All-Star Saturday to advance to the tourney. 

The Athletic provided additional details, specifically on the coaching front. 

“When it comes to who coaches the four teams, numerous league officials agree the coach of the top team in each respective conference will direct two of the four All-Star teams. According to two team officials with direct knowledge of league discussions to this point, staffs from the top two teams in each conference could be involved on All-Star Sunday, but other league sources said that option had not been discussed with all stakeholders.”

There is uncertainty over the selection process for the 16 All-Stars among the three senior teams, especially since the NBA will be doing away with the East versus West concept. One would assume the 16 players receiving the most votes (via fans, players and coaches) will make the rosters and get split into three squads. As for the competitors for the Rising Stars Game, the league office typically picks the best rookies and sophomores and pits them against each other in two separate teams. That process is likely to be retained. 

While the tournament format is a first-of-a-kind initiative, the NBA  tried out the pickup-style points system at the 2020 All-Star Game when the scores were reset to 0-0 at the start of the fourth quarter. The first team to reach 24 points in the fourth prevailed. Furthermore, during the 2022 Rising Stars Challenge, four eight-man squads played a semifinal and a final, with the first team to reach 40 and 50 points, respectively, winning the games. 

Yes, it’s all too complicated. Will it work? Who knows? This writer feels a simple Team USA versus Rest of the World concept would have been a better solution to make the game more competitive, especially in the aftermath of the Paris Olympics. Still, the NBA deserves credit for at least tweaking the format after last year’s disaster.