LeBron James seemed lukewarm, at best, on the NBA All-Star Game’s new format, which was announced earlier this week.
But he did have thoughts on one overall trend in the league.
James addressed the All-Star Game changes, which now include a mini-tournament of four teams and three games, ahead of the Lakers’ Thursday night matchup against the Kings in Sacramento.
And while the NBA superstar didn’t offer much in the way of an opinion, he did acknowledge that something had to change with the All-Star Game, which for years has been plagued by low-effort defense.
“I mean, it’s different in a sense,” James told reporters. “But, I don’t know, I don’t really have a … We’ll see, we’ll see when we get there. It’s different. Obviously, anytime you make some type of change it’s gonna be some buck back. I don’t know. I mean, I have my ideas of what could possibly work.”
James said that he had not been consulted on the All-Star Game format, but seemed to feel that changes need to be made beyond the All-Star showcase.
“It’s not just the All-Star Game. It’s our game in general,” James said. “… There’s a lot of f–king 3s being shot. So it’s a bigger conversation than just the All-Star Game.”
James, one of four players on the Lakers to have already attempted over 130 3-pointers this year, declined to say how he would address the 3-pointer issue.
“It’s just a bigger conversation,” he said.
Other NBA stars have voiced their opinion about the All-Star format change, with Kevin Durant trashing the tweaks.
“I absolutely hate it,” he said. “Terrible. All-Star Game formats changing. All the formats are terrible in my opinion and we should just go back to East-West and just play a game. I think we’ve been trying to bring that flare back somehow with the All-Star Weekend, but I think we just keep it traditional.”
