Speaking at his media availability ahead of Game 1 of the NBA Finals, commissioner Adam Silver confirmed that the 2026 All-Star Game would pivot to an event that has a more nationalistic flair. The move would seem be based on the success of the NHL's 4 Nations Face-Off last February, while also literally being sandwiched by Winter Olympics coverage on NBC before and after the game's new afternoon time slot.
"It's my job not to give up but also to innovate and to look at new approaches," Silver said in Oklahoma City Thursday night. "I've talked before -- I follow all the other sports, I thought what the NHL did with their 4 Nations Faceoff was very effective. There's a long history of international competition in the NBA and in global basketball. I mean, we had a spectacular Olympics last summer with huge ratings and an enormous amount of interest. But I also recognize that there are some forces working against us and that largely is often players needing a rest during the season, maybe teams not encouraging their players to play the hardest for what's viewed as an exhibition game."
Silver's announcement sounds promising after the poor reception to the tournament structure applied to this year's All-Star Game. Whatever the format of the game, Silver's decision to pivot to a format with a global identity appropriately accommodates their media partner's broadcast plans for the Milano Cortina Games in Northeast Italy.
"The very day we're on, the lead-in will be Winter Olympic events," Silver told Breakfast Ball on Wednesday. "And then, coming out of the All-Star Game, which will now be in the afternoon instead of the evening, there will be more Olympic events."
Silver is taking notes from the NHL, which opted to replace its All-Star Game this year with the 4 Nations Face-Off. The NHL's new format featured Canada, Finland, Sweden and the U.S. competing in a round-robin tournament over eight days. Silver did not identify which components of the 4 Nations Face-Off he sought to incorporate, but it seems the focus on national identity is paramount.
"We are looking at something that brings an international flavor into all-star competition," Silver said. "I think, as I said the other day, we're still experimenting internally with different formats and talking to the players' association about that. I don't think a straight-up USA vs. World makes sense, but of course that's not what they did in the NHL either. I think there'd probably be some different teams we form, but, whether it's some regional basis for how we combine certain groups of players -- 'cause USA players, I talked about [this] earlier, that international is 30% of the league, American players are still 70% of the league. So I think we can play off that nationalism."
Next year's All-Star Game takes place on Sunday, Feb. 15, at the Intuit Dome, the home of the Los Angeles Clippers. The Winter Games are scheduled between Feb. 6-22 in Italy.