Multiple NBA players voice frustration with extended breaks during 2025 All-Star Game

Multiple NBA players voice frustration with extended breaks during 2025 All-Star Game

The NBA tested out its new tournament-style All-Star Game format Sunday night. It featured each of the three All-Star Teams–plus the winner of the Rising Stars Competition–in a first-to-40 challenge where each team played one opening game while the winner advanced.

The format was previously used in just the Rising Stars Game, and it flowed very well … except for the incessant stoppages for Mr. Beast and Kevin Hart. The stoppages took up three times as much time as the actual games itself, which were competitive for the first time in over a half-decade.

But the presentation turned out to be an unmitigated disaster, and multiple NBA All-Stars voiced frustration regarding the prolonged breaks, according to ESPN’s Tim Bontemps.

“I would rather play without breaks,” Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said. “I feel like it was a little bit more towards the competitive side tonight, which is a good feeling, a step in the right direction. I guess it’s up to the guys that handle all that stuff to figure out what’s next and how to keep making it more and more interesting. Hopefully, we get there one day.”

“I would say it’s not ideal to stop like that if you want guys to be physical,” Jaylen Brown said. “I think guys were still out there having fun. All the OGs, team old knees and old backs, we came out on top, so I don’t think anyone else should have had any excuses. It’s definitely not ideal.”

“To be honest, I didn’t like it at all,” Trae Young said. “I didn’t like the breaks. The games were so short. Obviously, we can score. So, they’re trying to, I feel like, trying to extend the game, extend the TV time with the breaks and things like that.”

One of the biggest reasons for players not trying hard in recent memory was injury prevention. Forget the fans, the long stoppages aren’t necessarily good for the players’ bodies, regardless if they’re playing to only 40 or not. I’m no doctor or physical therapist, but playing hard for a few minutes, sitting for at least 30-60 minutes and then coming back to play 10 more (if you win) doesn’t sound good for the muscles if the goal is to play hyper-competitive basketball.

Thankfully, no players got hurt, so perhaps I’m overblowing that part of it. But the presentation was objectively bad. Whether that means lengthening the target score or shortening the game altogether, there has to be a better solution than what we saw Sunday.

What if they kept the format and played the Rising Stars Game on Sunday? What if the fourth team was composed of players who earned votes for the All-Star game, but didn’t make it–giving them a chance to earn that title? A couple of ideas.

The league continues to vomit on itself when it shouldn’t, but that’s neither here nor there.

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