Is It Time For The NBA To Expand The All-Star Game Rosters?
No professional sports league does the All-Star Game and All-Star Weekend better than the NBA does.
From the skills challenge to the dunk contest to the three-point shooting contest to all the extra festivities that go on leading up to the actual All-Star Game, there truly is nothing wrong with anything All-Star related in the NBA.
We always see guys like LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant named All-Stars, you know, the best-of-the-best as one would probably expect, but what about the rising superstars in this league and those that put together All-Star-like seasons for teams that do not get as much attention as other teams in the league?
For example, take a look at the seasons Tyrese Haliburton (Indiana Pacers), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder), Anfernee Simons (Portland Trail Blazers), Jalen Brunson (New York Knicks) and Lauri Markkanen (Utah Jazz) are having.
All five of these players are having incredible seasons for their respective teams, but do they truly have a chance to beat out the likes of Damian Lillard, Jaylen Brown, Zion Williamson and other top-tier talents in this league in order to make their first ever All-Star appearance?
Is it possible for one or two of these players listed above to make the All-Star Game this season?
Absolutely, but the one problem the NBA has right now, which is actually quite a good problem, is that there is too much talent across the league right now.
The only reason this is a problem is because the All-Star Game is composed of just 12 players from both the Eastern and Western Conferences, which means there will be a handful of players wondering why they did not receive an invite to All-Star Weekend.
The 2022-23 NBA season has been incredible thus far and quite honestly, this may be one of the best seasons we have ever since in terms of the talent gap across the league being non-existent.
On any given night, any of the 30 teams in the league can win a game and even those at the bottom of the standings have proven to be tough teams to beat.
Every win in the NBA this season has been earned, for the most part, and this is because every team in the league has at least one player that you can point to and make a legit All-Star argument for.
Sure, the All-Star Game is fine how it is and it is a very enjoyable spectacle to watch each and every season, but why not give more players a chance to stand on one of the league’s biggest stages?
I mean for real, the stage that they roll out for the All-Star Game every single season is gigantic!
Obviously everyone that gets selected as an All-Star does not end up playing in the game, as some players wind up missing the event due to injuries, but why should guys like Gilgeous-Alexander and Haliburton, who deserve this illustrious honor, be left off the initial rosters and named as replacements later on?
“You could make a real argument for both sides in regards to leave it how it is or increase the size, but if I am being honest, there are more than 12 guys in each conference that deserve to be All-Stars,” one Eastern Conference executive told Fastbreak on FanNation. “There are at least 15 different players who will be All-Stars every single year if they are healthy, so why should bottom-tier All-Star players be left out? They are still All-Star worthy, but because there are not enough roster spots, they get left out or named as replacements, which in my mind, is not the same as earning the All-Star honors to begin with.”
Everyone cannot be an All-Star, I get that, but the NBA finds itself in a very unique position because of the amount of talent that they have.
Nobody would be mad if the roster were expanded by 1-2 players on either side and at the end of the day, this only makes things better for the one group of people the league is trying to please: THE FANS.
Increasing the size of the All-Star Game from 24 total players to 26 players or even 28 players allows for more first-time All-Stars and more importantly, it allows for those who truly deserve this honor to be included.
There are plenty of players in this league that we all talk about as being All-Stars all the time even though some of them have never been in the All-Star Game!
Just because you are a big name in the NBA does not necessarily mean you deserve to be an All-Star every year and just because you play for a small market team with a losing record does not mean you do not deserve to be an All-Star.
Adding more All-Star Game roster spots takes away the discrepancy and bias that leans towards the well-known players in this league, giving a chance for the next generation of stars to rise up.
Be sure to catch up on the newest episode of The Fast Break Podcast hosted by Fastbreak's own Brett Siegel!
Streaming on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, The Fast Break Podcast takes you inside the league with the latest news, intel, rumors and interviews from those close to the action for all 30 teams. Be on the lookout for a new episodes every Friday.
