The NBA All-Star Game is reverting to its traditional format, removing the draft process and eliminating the Elam Ending

The NBA All-Star Game is returning to its original format, with the Eastern Conference facing off against the Western Conference in Indianapolis for the first time since 1985. This marks the end of the All-Star Draft, which has been in place for the past six seasons. The game will now follow regular-season scoring, discarding the untimed fourth quarter with the “final target score” used in the Elam Ending.

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Teams will still comprise 12 players from each conference, and fan voting among the starting five players on each team will determine the team captains. In the latest voting update as of January 18, Giannis Antetokounmpo and LeBron James were leading the fan vote in the East and West, respectively, with other top vote-getters including Kevin Durant, Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokić, and Jayson Tatum.

While the return to the traditional format may seem promising, the league previously had similar intentions when it introduced the draft format in 2018. The All-Star Game has often lacked competitiveness, with players showing minimal interest in defense or putting excessive effort into a game that ultimately holds no significance. The draft format, where team captains like LeBron James selected their teams, brought an element of fun and novelty but did not significantly address the competitiveness issue.

Given that the competitiveness problem persisted both before and after the format switch, it remains uncertain whether this latest change will effectively address the lack of competitive spirit during what is anticipated to be an entertaining weekend at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis in February. The game still lacks any meaningful stakes.

Nevertheless, the traditional All-Star Game format is making a comeback.