Utah Jazz's Lauri Markkanen Gets Honest on New NBA All-Star Format

After the events of last season's NBA All-Star weekend dud, the league is set to make another pivot to the All-Star Game and its format for 2026 in Los Angeles.

According to ESPN's Shams Charania, the NBA will "likely" be transitioning to a USA vs. World format consisting of three eight-player teams, two of those being U.S.-born, one being international, going against one another in a Round Robin-style tournament.

The 2026 NBA All-Star Game format is likely to feature a round-robin tournament consisting three eight-player squads of two USA teams and one World team, sources tell ESPN. NBA and players union presented format to the Competition Committee on Wednesday and response was positive. pic.twitter.com/xuR46pVYyu
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 3, 2025

Undoubtedly a bit of a change-up from what the league decided to put together for last year's All-Star game in San Francisco, but when asking the thoughts of Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen on the idea, he seems to be a fan of the concept.

"There's always pride when you're representing your country, or in this case, the world. I think it's going to be a fun format, and hopefully I can be a part of it," Markkanen said in an interview with BasketNews' Edvinas Jablonskis.

Markkanen comes fresh off a summer in which he represented his own home country in Finland in the midst of a historic EuroBasket tournament run, leading them to fourth place, all while being vocal about loving the opportunity to represent his roots.

Now, he can gun for that same opportunity in the league by claiming those All-Star honors for what would be his first appearance since 2023.

Feb 19, 2023; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Team Giannis forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (right) drafts forward Lauri Markkanen (23) before the 2023 NBA All-Star Game at Vivint Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

Markkanen even went as far as breaking down his ideal Team World of top NBA stars, and had a pretty dominant starting five.

Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic, Victor Wembanyama and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander filled out his list, with others like Franz Wagner, Alperen Sengun, Domantas Sabonis, and Karl-Anthony Towns landing some consideration as well– all of which will be in that mix for those All-Star honors come this next season.

“There are no bad options there. I think it’s a list of really good players, and it’s going to come down to team success and how players perform in each and every year,” Markkanen said. “And so I think the format is going to be fun to compete against the USA teams, and we’ll see who makes the team.”

Will Markkanen have enough to get back to All-Star Weekend this season? That fate relies on a lot going right for both him and the Jazz, but he's motivated to make it happen nonetheless.

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