The NBA All-Star Game is upon us. What could be more exciting than that? The All-Star Game has become quite the spectacle, with the NBA’s biggest and brightest stars coming together for a weekend that’s just as much about rubbing elbows with celebrities and living the high life as it is about the game. Make no mistake, this isn’t Michael Jordan’s All-Star Game, where the Chicago Bulls legend was notorious for talking trash and taking names. His Airness had a competitive fire that could not be matched and he took the game extremely seriously.
A lot has changed in the past two decades since Jordan dominated the NBA All-Star Game. In fact, the game itself had become a bit of a farse with little to no defense being played and scored that would routinely start approaching the 200 point mark, although never quite getting there. In recent years, things got so bad that commissioner Adam Silver proposed a drastic change to mix up the game and bring back some of the fiery spirit that made the All-Star Game so appealing in the first place.
In lieu of the traditional Eastern Conference vs. Western Conference setup, the top vote-getters from each conference will have the opportunity to choose their own team using a school yard pick format. The 10 starters were selected by the fans, players and media. Then the coaches fleshed out the reserves to finalize the roster. At that point, the draft took place with captains Stephen Curry and LeBron James choosing in their teammates for the game.
The biggest question now is which star-studded team will win the game. There are many sites like 888sport which will let you place bets on the 2018 NBA All-Star Game, so being able to analyze both rosters and understand how these new teammates will work together will be critical for placing a smart bet. We’ve got some insights that may help you pick the right team.
In the end, it really boils down to whether you think the new format will encourage defense or if the game will turn into a high-scoring showboat affair like it has in past seasons. If the players take the game seriously and play defense, then team LeBron should have the edge thanks to their size advantage. However, if it becomes a shoot-out, then clearly the hot hands of Steph Curry and James Harden have the potential to light the world on fire.
One other storyline to watch is whether any bad blood causes chemistry problems for Team LeBron. Will LeBron and Kyrie Irving be able to co-exist now that they’ve had time away from each other? Will Kevin Durant display any chemistry with one of his biggest rivals. LeBron took a big chance in selecting some of his biggest rivals to be his teammates. Will he embrace the challenge or will Team Curry prove to be too much?
Our pick is to never doubt The King. I say go with Team LeBron all the way!
