Type | Exhibition game |
League | NBA |
Frequency | Annual |
Inaugurated | 1951 |
Most recent | 2024 (Indiana) |
Previous | 2023 (Utah) |
Next event | 2025 (Golden State) |
Series | NBA All-Star Weekend |
Inaguration | 1951 |
Participants | Eastern Conference All-Stars Western Conference All-Stars |
Most wins | Eastern Conference (38 wins) |
Recent winner | Eastern Conference (2024) |
The National Basketball Association staged its first All-Star Game in the Boston Garden on March 2, 1951. From that year on, the game has matched the best players in the Eastern Conference with the best players in the Western Conference.
The participants are currently chosen in two ways. The first is via fan ballot, with the leading vote recipients at each position starting the game; secondly the reserves are chosen by a vote among the head coaches of each squad's particular conference.[1] Coaches are not allowed to vote for their own players. If a player is injured and cannot participate, the commissioner will select a replacement.
The coaches who currently lead the teams with the most wins in their conference through the Sunday two weeks before the game coach their respective conferences. However, the same coach cannot coach the team in consecutive seasons.[1] This is the so-called "Riley Rule" so named because coach Pat Riley's Lakers teams of the 1980s won so often that he coached the Western Conference team nearly every season in the 1980s. In the event that a coach's team repeats as the best record holder, the coach from the team with the second-best record will serve as All-Star coach for that conference.
Features of the All-Star Game[]
The All-Star Game is played under normal NBA rules, but there are notable differences from an average game.
Since the starting All-Stars are selected by fan vote, players sometimes start the game at atypical positions. For instance, in 2007 Kobe Bryant and Tracy McGrady had the two highest fan vote totals among Western Conference guards. As both players normally play Shooting Guard, Bryant, who is 6'6" (198 cm), started the game as a Point Guard, a position usually manned by a much smaller player.
The player introductions are usually accompanied by a significant amount of fanfare, including lighting effects, dance music, and pyrotechnics. Special uniforms are designed for the game each year, usually red for the Western Conference and blue for the Eastern Conference, but the 1997–2002 game allowed players wearing their respective team uniforms. A major recording artist typically sings "The Star-Spangled Banner" prior to tipoff. One of the more memorable performances was given by Marvin Gaye during the 1983 game. Gaye was accompanied by Gordon Banks, who played a tape from an all night session that used numerous elements of soul music and funk. Banks still has that historic tape of the music to which Gaye sang his soulful version.
Gameplay usually involves players attempting spectacular slam dunks and alley oops. Defensive effort is limited and the final score of the game is generally much higher than an average NBA game. The coaches also try to give most of the reserve players some time on the court instead of using a limited rotation as they would in a normal game. The fourth quarter of the game is often played in a more competitive fashion if the game is close.
Halftime is also longer than a typical NBA game due to musical performances by various artists such as Elton John, Destiny's Child, Mariah Carey, OutKast, and most recently Dr. John.
Results[]
The Eastern Conference All-Stars lead the all-time series 38–29.
Year | Result | Host arena | Host city | Game MVP |
---|---|---|---|---|
1951 | East 111, West 94 | Boston Garden | Boston, MA | Ed Macauley, Boston Celtics |
1952 | East 108, West 91 | Boston Garden | Boston, MA | Paul Arizin, Philadelphia Warriors |
1953 | West 79, East 75 | Allen County War Memorial Coliseum | Fort Wayne, IN | George Mikan, Minneapolis Lakers |
1954 | East 98, West 93 (OT) | Madison Square Garden | New York, NY | Bob Cousy, Boston Celtics |
1955 | East 100, West 91 | Madison Square Garden | New York, NY | Bill Sharman, Boston Celtics |
1956 | West 108, East 94 | Rochester War Memorial Coliseum | Rochester, NY | Bob Pettit, St. Louis Hawks |
1957 | East 109, West 97 | Boston Garden | Boston, MA | Bob Cousy (2), Boston Celtics |
1958 | East 130, West 118 | St. Louis Arena | St. Louis, MO | Bob Pettit (2), St. Louis Hawks |
1959 | West 124, East 108 | Olympia Stadium | Detroit, MI | Elgin Baylor, Minneapolis Lakers Bob Pettit (3), St. Louis Hawks |
1960 | East 125, West 115 | Convention Hall | Philadelphia, PA | Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia Warriors |
1961 | West 153, East 131 | Onondaga County War Memorial Coliseum | Syracuse, NY | Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati Royals |
1962 | West 150, East 130 | St. Louis Arena | St. Louis, MO | Bob Pettit (4), St. Louis Hawks |
1963 | East 115, West 108 | LA Sports Arena | Los Angeles, CA | Bill Russell, Boston Celtics |
1964 | East 111, West 107 | Boston Garden | Boston, MA | Oscar Robertson (2), Cincinnati Royals |
1965 | East 124, West 123 | St. Louis Arena | St. Louis, MO | Jerry Lucas, Cincinnati Royals |
1966 | East 137, West 94 | Cincinnati Gardens | Cincinnati, OH | Adrian Smith, Cincinnati Royals |
1967 | West 135, East 120 | Cow Palace | Daly City, CA | Rick Barry, San Francisco Warriors |
1968 | East 144, West 124 | Madison Square Garden | New York, NY | Hal Greer, Philadelphia 76ers |
1969 | East 123, West 112 | Baltimore Civic Center | Baltimore, MD | Oscar Robertson (3), Cincinnati Royals |
1970 | East 142, West 135 | The Spectrum | Philadelphia, PA | Willis Reed, New York Knicks |
1971 | West 108, East 107 | San Diego Sports Arena | San Diego, CA | Lenny Wilkens, Seattle SuperSonics |
1972 | West 112, East 110 | The Forum | Inglewood, CA | Jerry West, Los Angeles Lakers |
1973 | East 104, West 84 | Chicago Stadium | Chicago, IL | Dave Cowens, Boston Celtics |
1974 | West 134, East 123 | Seattle Center Coliseum | Seattle, WA | Bob Lanier, Detroit Pistons |
1975 | East 108, West 102 | Veterans Memorial Coliseum | Phoenix, AZ | Walt Frazier, New York Knicks |
1976 | East 123, West 109 | The Spectrum | Philadelphia, PA | Dave Bing, Washington Bullets |
1977 | West 125, East 124 | Milwaukee Arena | Milwaukee, WI | Julius Erving, Philadelphia 76ers |
1978 | East 133, West 125 | Omni Coliseum | Atlanta, GA | Randy Smith, Buffalo Braves |
1979 | West 134, East 129 | Pontiac Silverdome | Pontiac, MI† | David Thompson, Denver Nuggets |
1980 | East 144, West 136 (OT) | Capital Centre | Landover, MD | George Gervin, San Antonio Spurs |
1981 | East 123, West 120 | Coliseum at Richfield | Richfield, OH | Nate Archibald, Boston Celtics |
1982 | East 120, West 118 | Brendan Byrne Arena | East Rutherford, NJ | Larry Bird, Boston Celtics |
1983 | East 132, West 123 | The Forum | Inglewood, CA | Julius Erving (2), Philadelphia 76ers |
1984 | East 154, West 145 (OT) | McNichols Sports Arena | Denver, CO | Isiah Thomas, Detroit Pistons |
1985 | West 140, East 129 | Hoosier Dome | Indianapolis, IN† | Ralph Sampson, Houston Rockets |
1986 | East 139, West 132 | Reunion Arena | Dallas, TX | Isiah Thomas (2), Detroit Pistons |
1987 | West 154, East 149 (OT) | Kingdome | Seattle, WA† | Tom Chambers, Seattle SuperSonics |
1988 | East 138, West 133 | Chicago Stadium | Chicago, IL | Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls |
1989 | West 143, East 134 | Astrodome | Houston, TX† | Karl Malone, Utah Jazz |
1990 | East 130, West 113 | Miami Arena | Miami, FL | Magic Johnson, Los Angeles Lakers |
1991 | East 116, West 114 | Charlotte Coliseum | Charlotte, NC | Charles Barkley, Philadelphia 76ers |
1992 | West 153, East 113 | Orlando Arena | Orlando, FL | Magic Johnson (2), Los Angeles Lakers |
1993 | West 135, East 130 (OT) | Delta Center | Salt Lake City, UT | Karl Malone (2), Utah Jazz John Stockton, Utah Jazz |
1994 | East 127, West 118 | Target Center | Minneapolis, MN | Scottie Pippen, Chicago Bulls |
1995 | West 139, East 112 | America West Arena | Phoenix, AZ | Mitch Richmond, Sacramento Kings |
1996 | East 129, West 118 | Alamodome | San Antonio, TX | Michael Jordan (2), Chicago Bulls |
1997 | East 132, West 120 | Gund Arena | Cleveland, OH | Glen Rice, Charlotte Hornets |
1998 | East 135, West 114 | Madison Square Garden | New York, NY | Michael Jordan (3), Chicago Bulls |
1999 | Canceled due to the league's lockout (originally set to play at the First Union Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)[2] | |||
2000 | West 137, East 126 | The Arena in Oakland | Oakland, CA | Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs Shaquille O'Neal, Los Angeles Lakers |
2001 | East 111, West 110 | MCI Center | Washington, DC | Allen Iverson, Philadelphia 76ers |
2002 | West 135, East 120 | First Union Center | Philadelphia, PA | Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers |
2003 | West 155, East 145 (2OT) | Philips Arena | Atlanta, GA | Kevin Garnett, Minnesota Timberwolves |
2004 | West 136, East 132 | Staples Center | Los Angeles, CA | Shaquille O'Neal (2), Los Angeles Lakers |
2005 | East 125, West 115 | Pepsi Center | Denver, CO | Allen Iverson (2), Philadelphia 76ers |
2006 | East 122, West 120 | Toyota Center | Houston, TX | LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers |
2007 | West 153, East 132 | Thomas & Mack Center | Las Vegas, NV* | Kobe Bryant (2), Los Angeles Lakers |
2008 | East 134, West 128 | New Orleans Arena | New Orleans, LA | LeBron James (2), Cleveland Cavaliers |
2009 | West 146, East 119 | US Airways Center | Phoenix, AZ | Kobe Bryant (3), Los Angeles Lakers Shaquille O'Neal (3), Phoenix Suns |
2010 | East 141, West 139 | Cowboys Stadium | Arlington, TX† | Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat |
2011 | West 148, East 143 | Staples Center | Los Angeles, CA | Kobe Bryant (4), Los Angeles Lakers |
2012 | West 152, East 149 | Amway Center | Orlando, FL | Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder |
2013 | West 143, East 138 | Toyota Center (2) | Houston, TX | Chris Paul, Los Angeles Clippers |
2014 | East 163, West 155 | Smoothie King Center (2) | New Orleans, LA (2) | Kyrie Irving, Cleveland Cavaliers |
2015 | West 163, East 158 | Barclays Center | New York City, NY (5) | Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder |
2016 | West 196, East 173 | Air Canada Centre | Toronto, Ontario, CA | Russell Westbrook (2), Oklahoma City Thunder |
2017 | West 192, East 182 | Smoothie King Center (3) | New Orleans, LA (3) | Anthony Davis, New Orleans Pelicans |
2018 | Team LeBron 148, Team Stephen 145 | Staples Center (3) | Los Angeles, CA (4) | LeBron James (3), Cleveland Cavaliers |
2019 | Team LeBron 178, Team Giannis 164 | Spectrum Center | Charlotte, NC (2) | Kevin Durant (2), Golden State Warriors |
2020 | Team LeBron 157, Team Giannis 155 | United Center | Chicago, IL (3) | Kawhi Leonard, Los Angeles Clippers |
2021 | Team LeBron 170, Team Durant 150 | State Farm Arena (Atlanta) | Atlanta, GA (3) | Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks |
2022 | Team LeBron 163, Team Durant 160 | Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse | Cleveland, OH (2) | Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors |
2023 | Team Giannis 184, Team LeBron 175 | Vivint Smart Home Arena | Salt Lake City, UT (2) | Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics |
2024 | East 211, West 186 | Bankers Life Fieldhouse | Indianapolis, IN (2) | Damian Lillard, Milwaukee Bucks |
2025 | West vs. East | Chase Center | San Francisco, CA | |
2026 | West vs. East | Intuit Dome | Inglewood, CA (3) |
- Note
- * denotes a city without an NBA team in play during that calendar year.
- # denotes an NBA All-Star game that is held at an NFL stadium.
- 1 See NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award for more information
- Memphis, Portland, Sacramento, Oklahoma City, and Toronto are the only current NBA cities that have not yet hosted an NBA All-Star Game.
Other All-Star events[]
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The All-Star Game is the featured event of All-Star Weekend, and it is held on a Sunday night. All-Star Weekend also includes a number of popular exhibition games and competitions featuring NBA players and alumni as well as players from the WNBA and D-League.
See also[]
- List of NBA All-Stars
- List of National Basketball Association All-Star Game broadcasters
- NBA All-Star Game records
- NBA All-Star Game Kobe Bryant MVP Award
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 espn.com, Anthony snubbed when All-Star reserves announced (AP report), accessed February 2, 2007