Heading into the 2018 National Basketball Association All-Star Game, not a few quarters believed the level of competition would be similar to that in recent memory — all offense and token defense over an essentially friendly atmosphere. Perhaps not to the extent that the previous year鈥檚 spectacle, in which a whopping 374 points were on the board all told, but close. In fact, bookmakers had the Over/Under at 340 markers, as good an indication as any of conventional wisdom鈥檚 sentiments.
There is, of course, reason to be skeptical of the All-Star Game鈥檚 quality of play. After all, the last thing those involved in its staging want is for any of the best of the best to get hurt in an exhibition. That said, the fact that there was significant pushback against the joke that it had become gave fans cause to hope that players would at least show they cared about the outcome. And, to its credit, the league leadership sought to make sure they did, exponentially increasing the winners鈥 pot and having the top vote getters from each conference complete their respective teams via a street-style process.
As things turned out, the changes delivered exactly as planned. True, hoops were still punctured to a degree rarely seen in the regular season. And, true, coverage remained spotty at best, again a reflection of players knowing well enough not to risk injury. On the other hand, yesterday鈥檚 match was far from ho-hum. If anything, it was competitive from the outset; clearly, the All-Stars came not just to play, but to win. Bragging rights were at stake, and how.
Which, in a nutshell, was why the 2018 All-Star Game wound up showcasing many of the facets of a playoff set-to — from trash talking to full-court presses to flare screens to designed plays to actual timeouts being called. For good measure, there were also the requisite comebacks, controversial calls, howls of protest, and genuine displays of emotion from even those in the bench. And when the final buzzer sounded, Team LeBron celebrated as if it had claimed the Larry O鈥橞rien Trophy, and, just as importantly, Team Steph watched in disappointment.
No doubt, there will be more tweaks done to the All-Star Game. NBA commissioner Adam Silver isn鈥檛 one to accept the status quo, and will progressively strive to make it better. In the meantime, hoops habitues can rest easy knowing that it鈥檚 once again going in the right direction.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since 大象传媒 introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is the Senior Vice-President and General Manager of Basic Energy Corp.
