The 2023 All-Star weekend is officially under wraps from Salt Lake City, Utah and it’s safe to say that fans had mixed emotions about it. While many were impressed with G-Leaguer Mac McClung stepping up to the plate and ‘reviving’ the Slam Dunk Contest, others were rather taken aback by the lackadaisical nature of the All-Star Game.
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The lack of defense coupled with a slew of injuries to superstars across the league that many would want to see in the All-Star Game led to a rather mediocre showing. Michael Malone even said that the 2023 ASG was the ‘worst basketball game ever played’. Shai Gilgeous Alexander and Jaylen Brown both claimed it lacked competitiveness and needed more incentives.
At the end of the day, the ASG is an exhibition game and with that out of the way, the NBA can get back to showcasing ‘real basketball’ as soon as the All-Star break gets over.
Also read: “Don’t miss a dunk”: Shaquille O’Neal’s “Ingenious” Advice to Mac McClung Saved the Dunk Contest
When do NBA games start back up again?
February 16th was the last night of games played that featured merely 6 teams going at one another. The All-Star break is for a week as regular season NBA games will start back up from February 23rd as 18 teams go at one another to continue their journey for the 2022-23 season.
Some teams and players around the league however, will be getting more rest than others. LaMelo Ball and the Charlotte Hornets for example, didn’t have an All-Star selected from their team. They also played their last game on February 15th and will have their return game on February 24th, not the 23rd, giving them well over a week’s worth of rest.
Several teams have a new look to them that fans have only seen a glimpse of or haven’t seen at all. The Phoenix Suns and the Los Angeles Clippers will be interesting watches once Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook get integrated into their respective rosters.
The entirety of the Western Conference landscape has changed, making it just as competitive as many remember it to be. The Lakers, Clippers, Mavericks, and Suns are the 4 teams that had quite the revamp and will be watched the most to see if their championship aspirations continue to be validated by their changes.
