The Boston Celtics keep on winning.
All-Stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown helped lift Team Shaq to victory in Sunday’s NBA All-Star game, albeit in a new format that drew mixed reviews from players and fans alike.
Tatum led Boston’s All-Star duo with a combined 21 points, six rebounds, and six assists in a pair of games playing on a team hand-picked by Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal. Brown, who also played for Team Shaq, added 12 points, two rebounds, and one steal. Team Shaq earned wins over Team Candace, coached by WNBA great Candace Parker, and Team Chuck, picked by Hall of Famer Charles Barkley, on its way to being crowned All-Star Game victors.
The four-team, single-elimination tournament featured three teams of duly-voted All-Stars and a fourth — more controversial — team of talented NBA newcomers. They had earned their spot in the bracket by winning Friday’s Rising Stars tournament. Though the team of young NBA stars was eliminated early in the competition after its first bout against Team Shaq, their sheer presence in Sunday’s event was tough for some to swallow.
“I got mixed emotions or feelings about the Rising Stars part,” said Tatum, a six-time All-Star. “It’s kind of like a big deal to be an All-Star and play Sunday night. You know, some guys get snubbed and other guys have to work really, really hard to make the All-Star Game. Playing on Sunday night is special and always has been.”
The other notable complaint came as play was stopped for more than 20 minutes midway through the night’s second game to honor the NBA on TNT crew who were airing their final All-Star Game after more than 40 years covering the event.
“We were sitting down for 20 minutes or whatever it was,” Tatum said. “It was kind of tough to get back into the game after that.”
Tatum’s 21-6-6 performance actually bested that of All-Star Game MVP Steph Curry, though it’s hard to argue against the star player of the game’s host city winning the award given his near-equal stat line.
Curry finished with 20 points, 10 rebounds, and two assists in two games for Team Shaq, knocking down six three-pointers to the delight of the San Francisco crowd. But it was Tatum who finished with a game-high 15 points and shot an impressive 3-for-4 from beyond the arc in the decisive title tilt against Team Chuck.
Of the 14 votes cast for MVP, 12 were cast for Curry, one was cast for Tatum, and one was cast for Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
It’s been quite some time since the city with the most NBA titles — 18 — hosted the sport’s All-Star Game.
If you’re counting, it was 1964 when NBA greats Bill Russell and Jerry West faced off in the more conventional East vs. West bout on the Boston Garden Floor. When asked Sunday if he’d like to see Boston host an NBA All-Star Game in the future, Brown said he was all for the idea.
“I think the city is equipped for it,” Brown said. “They got the craziest fans in the world in Boston so I’m sure that they would enjoy it. It kind of seemed like it was a little empty in here tonight. I don’t think in Boston that would happen. So yeah, if we bring the All-Star Game to Boston, I would love to be there and I would love to participate. I think that would be great for the game.”
No major sport has brought its all-star game to Boston since the turn of the Millennium. The city’s most recent were the NHL All-Star Game in 1996 and the MLB All-Star Game in 1999.
While the new format did lead to more competitive play than fans have seen in recent years, for those who value nostalgia and tradition, the NBA All-Star Game still leaves plenty to desire.
Think about records? Tatum currently holds the record for most points scored in an All-Star Game with 55 in 2023. But that was earned in a typical 48-minute game. Or how about Lebron James’s record for most cumulative points scored over his illustrious All-Star career? It could take a long time to top his 434 points if games continue to only be played to 40.
Maybe it’s time to head back to the drawing board.
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