The NBA has been considering different ideas to combat the rapidly declining interest in the NBA All-Star Game. The league has once again proposed a new format for this year in hopes of spicing up the contest, but the changes have mostly disappointed NBA fans. Therefore, a frustrated Lou Williams offered a simple, common-sense remedy to restore the weekend’s excitement.
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Williams’ solution just involves players playing hard for 12 minutes.
While discussing the general dissatisfaction with the new All-Star format, Run it Back co-host Michelle Beadle asked her panelists if the midseason festivities would soon be irrelevant like the NFL’s failing Pro Bowl, which has been viewed as a joke that often leaves out the league’s best talents.
Williams didn’t seem too pleased with the idea. The 38-year-old responded with a remedy instead. “All of these gimmicks, all of these ideas; it is a simple fix. Fellas, for 12 minutes, just play hard,” Williams said.
Considering the immense depth in each team’s All-Star roster, the three-time Sixth Man of the Year doesn’t believe it is too much to ask for the league’s stars to play hard for a quarter.
Williams also proposed some old school basketball action instead of shooting uncontested logo threes. He urged the stars to have that competitive spirit to prove themselves to be better than the other stars,
However, the 17-year-veteran knows the contest isn’t a rule change away from bringing fans back, saying, “It’s so many questions about this new format, like what happens if the G League guys beat your top eight guys? Do you think that’s something that the fans wanna see? Like, no, they wanna see the best of the best competing with each other.”
Basketball fans want to see the NBA’s best compete, not get beat by G Leaguers in the All-Star Game
“All of these gimmicks, all of these ideas; it is a simple fix. Fellas, for 12 minutes, just play hard.” – @TeamLou23
https://t.co/38dteoWZhV pic.twitter.com/2gdCrnlarQ
— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) December 23, 2024
“Give us the dunks, give us the lobs, in the fourth quarter, we wanna see some separation… Fellas, for 12 minutes, show these people why the love you so much,” LouWill added.
However, he didn’t seem too optimistic about that actually happening. He even admitted that the players will probably play it safe to avoid injuries like last year.
Williams is far from the only NBA voice to push back against the league’s constant format tweaks. Several stars who will likely be invited to take part in the weekend have also shared their contempt for the alterations.
LeBron and KD also criticized ASG’s new format
LeBron James and Kevin Durant also aired out their opinions on the new ruleset with the Phoenix Suns star the more vocal detractor of the league’s head-scratching changes, bluntly stating “I hate it,” in a recent interview.
The 36-year-old believes the league should return to its more traditional East-West format if there is any hope to bring back the game’s entertainment value. The 14-time All-Star acknowledged that he could be wrong about this season’s unique format but still believes the event would be more successful if it reverted to its roots.
