We just completed an interesting All-Star Weekend! We had a Saturday night of Skills Challenge contestants getting disqualified, 3-point shooting displays from new champ Tyler Herro and Mac McClung winning his third straight Slam Dunk Contest crown. There was the debut of the new All-Star format, which is already drawing rave reviews and severe criticism at the same time. We also have the stretch run of the regular season starting Wednesday, and the NBA Stock Report never takes a week off.
Here’s your latest NBA Rewind!
Big Story: Did the All-Star format work?
Well … that was officially an All-Star Game (or games?), I guess. The new format to make the players care about the All-Star Game and put on a competitive show debuted Sunday. There are a lot of mixed reviews on it. I saw some people saying the tournament format injected new life into the All-Star Game, much like we’ve seen from the Play-In and NBA Cup tournaments. Others said it was confusing: too clunky/disorganized and there wasn’t enough basketball. To be fair, both statements could be correct.
TNT was broadcasting its final All-Star Game (at least until another media deal gives them TV rights again) and trying to juggle this new format, which entailed three mini-games being a race to 40 points. We had the three teams of eight All-Stars, as selected by the fans, players, media and coaches. A fourth team was the winning squad of the Rising Stars Game from Friday night. Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green did not like the fourth team being allowed to play.
Before the tournament tipped Sunday, he was quoted that the Rising Stars players “don’t deserve the privilege of playing on Sunday.” That’s supposed to be a sacred, earned day to play on All-Star weekend. That wasn’t all Green said, though. Remember, he’s an employee of TNT, so he was on the panel between mini-games and hit that point even harder after the first game:
“You work all year to be an All-Star, and you get to play up to 40 (points), and you’re done. This is so unfair to Victor Wembanyama, who just took this game really seriously, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who just took this game really seriously. When you talk about chasing after the points records, Melo and Kobe and all these guys, who have had great scoring nights, (players) don’t get the opportunity to do that with this game — all so we can watch some Rising Stars. We’re about to watch the Olympic team, now we get the treat of watching the Olympic team play against a U-19 team. Come on, what are we doing? This is ridiculous.”
But as Charles Barkley reminded Green, the All-Stars did this to themselves. They didn’t take the competitive nature of the All-Star Game seriously in recent years. We’ve had maybe four close All-Star Games in the past decade. And even then, you could question whether or not the competitive nature has been there, with teams regularly reaching 170, 180 and 190 points in a 48-minute game. Last year’s 211-186 debacle caused commissioner Adam Silver to go off script and admonish the players for what was on display. That made the NBA feel like they had to adopt the Rising Stars format to try to inject some life into this thing. Maybe using the Rising Stars to bait the All-Stars into trying was intentional on a few levels. It was essentially shaming the players into playing some defense.
Candace’s Rising Stars guard Keyonte George (left) and Shaq’s OGs guard Damian Lillard battle for the ball during the 2025 NBA All-Star Game on Sunday. (Darren Yamashita / Imagn Images)
Remember the new Elam ending a few years ago? Once we got to the fourth quarter, the way to win was to reach a target score rather than play through a timed period. The first Elam ending finish was great, giving us a dramatic (and brief) fix to the All-Star Game’s erosion. Then, it wasn’t fixed anymore, and we had to hope games were close to get a good finish in a drawn-out night. Even in this version, though, we saw only about 40 to 45 minutes of game action during a three-hour television event. The product as a whole needs to be fine-tuned for fan consumption.
It’s frustrating because the All-Star Game is supposed to be a competitive exhibition to bestow a big individual honor and celebrate the NBA and the game of basketball. Players feel like the schedule and availability are too tiring with all of the corporate and personal responsibilities being jam-packed into that weekend. They’re probably right. Even as a media member, it can be exhausting. But that’s what those big contracts are for (in regards to the players, not the media).
Green is right that this format isn’t fair to the history of the event. But you know what else wasn’t fair? Most of the All-Star Games of the last decade. If players want it to remain a sacred honor and not let just anybody play on that Sunday, then they need to treat it as such. If not, the league is going to keep altering and tweaking it and seeing how they can update the paint job — because the product must be sold. The broadcast has to sell it. You can’t do that without the players making it enticing.
Maybe making the format USA versus the World will fix it? The new changes will always help … until they don’t anymore.
NBA Stock Report extended
Even coming out of All-Star Weekend, market trends in the NBA matter. They matter now more than ever because this is the final segment of the regular season for everybody. Two teams we expected to face off in the NBA Finals last year are trending toward making that a reality this year. Here’s your latest NBA Stock Market!
📈 Denver Nuggets (36-19): This is worthy of a deeper dive in a future edition of The Bounce, but the Nuggets look like contenders again. This team has been on an impressive run and has erased pretty much every doubt I have about it. Remember, this squad dropped to 11-10 by losing to the Washington Wizards on a night Nikola Jokić dropped a career-high 56 points. Since then, the Nuggets are 25-8, have been the third-best team in the NBA (with record and net rating) and are within a whisper of the No. 2 seed in the West.
📉 The Phoenix Suns (26-28) have been in a bit of a slump. They are 1-6 in the month of February with losses to Portland (twice), Oklahoma City, Denver, Memphis and Houston. Denver and OKC won easily, and Portland had an easy win and a tight victory. The two games against the Grizzlies and Rockets were pretty solid. The Suns’ one win in this stretch is an overtime victory against the Utah Jazz. During all of this, Kevin Durant was possibly miffed at being in some trade rumors, which included a possible reunion in Golden State. Ultimately, the Suns have been broken for a bit, and I’m not sure they have it in them to turn it around.
Can Kevin Durant (right) and Devin Booker help turn things around for the Suns? (Joe Camporeale / Imagn Images)
📈 Boston Celtics (39-16): The Celtics have won seven of their last eight games, and their only loss was a bit of a confusing one to Dallas. Four of the wins were by double digits, and one of their closer victories was their second against Cleveland this season. After two months of shooting a paltry league average from 3-point range, the Celtics are above 38 percent in the month of February. Most importantly, their defense looks back up to snuff. The Celtics may not catch the Cavs in the standings, but Cleveland can’t feel great about how Boston is playing.
📉 Miami Heat (25-28): In the last two weeks, the Heat have the same record as Charlotte and Toronto. The Heat are 1-5 in their last six games and rode a four-game skid into the All-Star break. The Jimmy Butler trade drama certainly contributed to this, but post-trade, this team still can’t score. The Heat actually have the worst offense in the NBA over the last two weeks, and their defense has been about league average. With the shine of Herro’s first All-Star appearance and 3-point contest win now out of the way, this team has to figure out how to win games. Miami is currently ninth in the East and three games behind Detroit for a top-six spot.
📈 Detroit Pistons (29-26): Speaking of the Pistons, I don’t think we have to worry about them dipping below .500 again this season. We might be looking at a team that goes from one of the worst in NBA history a year ago to a top-six squad in the East. Head coach J.B. Bickerstaff has done an excellent job, and we’ve seen Cade Cunningham take a leap in learning how to close out games. The Pistons’ first five games after the break are tough, but their offense and defense have both been great lately. Some of that is boosted by smacking the Bulls around, but their overall play supports the successful numbers.
📉 Houston Rockets (34-21): I’m not totally concerned about the Rockets because they’re well-coached and have so much talent. They also won two of their final three entering the break. But Houston had seen a recent dip by losing seven of nine games. There were some confusing losses in there, too. We don’t expect the offense to always be good with the Rockets, but their defensive slippage has been noteworthy. As of now, Houston is currently down to fourth in the West and sits 3 1/2 games ahead of Minnesota (31-25), which is in seventh.
The Week Ahead: Play-In Tournament racing
We’re down to roughly 30 games left for each team in the regular season. That means we get to use three of the most urgent words in the regular-season lexicon: the stretch run. While plenty of teams are trying to get into the top six of their respective conference, we know there will be some that simply don’t even make the Play-In Tournament. That’s fine when you have your sights set on Cooper Flagg or the rest of this incredible draft class coming to the NBA in June. That’s not fine when you’re trying to get into some of that sweet, sweet playoff revenue. Let’s take a look at the Play-In situations for both the East and West:
Western Conference races
We expect the Thunder, Grizzlies and Nuggets to be safe in the West. It would take massive injuries for these teams to really fall to the Play-In danger zone. It’s also likely the fourth-place Rockets will be fine, too, but they’ve had a rough couple of weeks that have them on less stable ground than before. After Houston, the Los Angeles teams are both a bad week away from slipping into the Play-In Tournament.
On the other end of the standings, we know New Orleans and Utah are busier watching March Madness for scouting purposes than looking to make a standings push. That leaves teams 7-13 either trying to get into the Play-In Tournament or attempting to get into the top six in the West.
7. Minnesota Timberwolves (31-25): They’re a game behind the Clippers, and the Wolves have the tiebreaker over them. Recently, the Wolves have played much better, winning nine of their last 13 games. Their defense is sixth in the league, and their offense has improved to be tied for 12th right now. The Wolves have found a bit of a rhythm with Julius Randle hurt, but this team still needs to figure out how to play consistently with him on the court. I’ve said it before, but Randle should be their sixth man, and Naz Reid should start next to Rudy Gobert. Maybe then Anthony Edwards can have more space to operate.
8. Dallas Mavericks (30-26): Despite injuries and trade drama, the Mavericks have played better basketball lately. The good news is they’ve won four of their last five games. The bad news is Anthony Davis, Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II are all out for multiple weeks. The Mavs have sustained themselves by duct-taping together lineups. But they are going against too much talent in the West to think this will be fine as the status quo. They need to get healthy and go grab the tiebreakers against the Lakers and Clippers.
9. Sacramento Kings (28-27): The Kings have been dealing with the aftermath of their own trade drama, but they’ve found a better place lately. After losing six of eight games, they’ve won three of their last four. The Kings haven’t had much comfort at home, and they’re about the same on the road. Zach LaVine is still getting acclimated to his new teammates, but DeMar DeRozan is cooking. Sacramento has slipped lately on defense, and that’s what needs correcting. I’m not sure the Kings have the balance on offense to just go off consistently, but if they can find consistency on defense and regain the beam-lighting, home-court advantage, we’ll see them go on a run.
10. Golden State Warriors (28-27): Green didn’t just talk crap about the Rising Stars and new All-Star format. He made a bold proclamation: He said the Warriors are going to win the championship. The 2025 NBA championship. To Green’s credit, this team looks a lot better and more competent with Butler. But this wasn’t a high bar to clear with how the Warriors have played since the first month of the season. Butler will have to perfectly mesh with Green and Steph Curry. That’s very doable. But the Warriors will also need Buddy Hield and company to find some consistent shooting accuracy to become title contenders.
In his short time in California, Jimmy Butler (left) has been a solid complement to Draymond Green (center) and the Warriors (Jerome Miron / Imagn Images)
11. Phoenix Suns (26-28): We talked about the Suns in the NBA Stock Report, but it’s worth reiterating here. This team doesn’t have it. It’s desperate for Bol Bol production right now. Bradley Beal feels like an afterthought, except he’s still very much on the team. Durant is playing great basketball, and Devin Booker remains very good, but this Suns team just doesn’t have what it takes to make a big run. I wouldn’t even expect them to make the Play-In unless they find a cosmic shift in their team dynamic and on-court execution.
12. San Antonio Spurs (23-29): We are not seeing positive results of the De’Aaron Fox trade, and it’s causing the Spurs to slip down the standings. The Spurs’ downward spiral started before Fox even got there. In either case, they’ve gone just 5-13 in their last 18 games. Their defense is garbage without Wembanyama on the court. They’re being forced to play Chris Paul and Fox together, and I’m not sure you can get away with that for long. The Spurs need to give Wemby help, and they have to forge that chemistry with Fox fast. The good news is they have more than just this season to figure out the pairing.
13. Portland Trail Blazers (23-32): Technically, the Blazers are currently in it! They’re five games out of the No. 10 spot with two other teams in the way. They’re taking a three-game losing streak into the break. We need to see if this young Blazers squad can withstand missing Deandre Ayton for about a month. At least they’re attempting to play defense and win games.
Eastern Conference races
Let’s go to the East! Cleveland, Boston and New York have nothing to fear when it comes to the Play-In. We might not have to worry about the next three squads, either; Indiana, Milwaukee and Detroit might be safe from the Play-In. The rest of the East, however, has been in a slump, and we’re not seeing the push for the top six as hoped.
7. Orlando Magic (27-29): All of those positive feelings about the resilience of the Magic are slipping. Jamahl Mosley is still an excellent coach, but this team can’t score at all. The Magic don’t really have the personnel to do it. It is the exact inverse of how good their defense is. Paolo Banchero is back, as is Franz Wagner, but they’re not rediscovering their early-season success. The good news for the Magic is they have the tiebreaker over the Pistons, so a big push can force Detroit into the Play-In. But we haven’t seen this Magic team throw together a good stretch of basketball in more than a month.
8. Atlanta Hawks (26-29): These other teams think the Play-In is their ally? They merely adopted the Play-In; the Hawks were born in it! We saw them send out De’Andre Hunter and Bogdan Bogdanović at the deadline. We know the Hawks are still trying to figure things out, like a 24-year-old in his sixth year at college beginning to sweat not being on his parents’ health insurance much longer. After losing eight straight, the Hawks had a good stretch by winning four of six. Maybe they will finally get enough credits to graduate to something that isn’t this.
9. Miami Heat (25-28): We know the Heat are comfortable here, but they’ve usually had the hope of Butler in the mix. Now, the Heat are relying solely on Herro and Bam Adebayo to lead Erik Spoelstra’s squad. They have some good things working for them, especially rookie big man Kel’el Ware. Miami also has two games against the Hawks in the next couple weeks, and those can become massive opportunities.
If the Heat want to turn things around, they’ll need to rely on the leadership of Bam Adebayo (13) and new 3-point champion Tyler Herro. (Jim Rassol / Imagn Images)
10. Chicago Bulls (22-33): The Bulls have won four of their last 17 games. They traded away LaVine and are not really competitive these days. We were happy for them because they only lost by 18 to Detroit right before the break. That’s because, in their previous game, they were once down by as many as 49 to the Pistons and lost by 40. The Bulls are trying to develop their young guys, which is the right call, but someone has to make the Play-In by default, and they’re currently 1 1/2 games ahead of Philadelphia for that default honor.
11. Philadelphia 76ers (20-34): I wrote in The Bounce on Friday that the Sixers need to punt on the rest of the season:
I don’t understand why the Sixers are continuing to approach the season this way. George has been awful based on the standards he set for himself. He was awesome last season. Embiid can’t stay healthy and appears to have random swelling in his knee.
To quote the great Marcellus Wallace, “This is pride f—–g with you.” If Embiid needs surgery and a long recovery time from a knee injury he suffered a year ago, he should have it now. Punt on the season. Get him some rest.
I stand by this. Nothing has changed over the weekend. The Sixers are not going to be a Disney movie where a magical run happens. They’re not going to be the 2023 Miami Heat. They’re just praying these magic beans will start growing if they keep watering them.
12. Brooklyn Nets (20-34): If I include the Sixers, then I have to put the Nets in here. They have the same record. Brooklyn has been hot, though. It looked like the Nets were headed toward a hard tank, and then they won six of their last seven. We don’t have to truly consider them playoff contenders (although the current math doesn’t negate the possibility), but the Nets might not be the easy win we thought they’d be for the rest of the season.
13. Toronto Raptors (17-38): It seemed only fair to include the Raptors because I included the Blazers above. Portland has been a lot better than Toronto, but they’re both five games out of their respective conference’s No. 10 spots. The Raptors have lost five of their last six and currently have no momentum to make a push.
(Photo of Victor Wembanyama: Ezra Shaw / Getty Images )
