The 2024 NBA All-Star Game made headlines for all the wrong reasons, as fans and analysts heavily criticized the players’ lack of effort in the sluggish 397-point three-point shooting fest. On the latest episode of the KG Certified show, Hall of Famers Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce discussed the possibility of a team emulating the East and scoring over 200 points in a regular season game.
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While Garnett claimed it’s only a matter of time before we see a team score 200 points, Pierce rejected the premise. He said,
“It’s not gonna happen in our lifetime. It’ll never be a 200-point game [in the regular season]. We saw it in the All-Star game. If I ever see an NBA game get 200 points the way they got it in the All-Star game, I’m done watching.”
Garnett responded that the older generation hadn’t witnessed the current level of shooting and scoring when they were growing up, prompting them to reject the idea that a team scoring 200 points was possible. He said,
“We’ve seen the game. We like it the way it is. [But] this is a new wave. These kids got fingernail polish and s**t on they fingers… In order to understand, we are gonna have to take these glasses off and get new ones. These are different lenses… We’ve been seeing it through these old lens, and it look like it looking.”
Many fans might agree with Garnett’s take as the game is evolving year by year. The league average for points per game is 115.4, the highest since the 1969-70 season. The scoring average has risen every season, bar one, since the 2011-12 campaign. Teams are scoring at a historic rate, and it’s only a matter of time before one breaches the 200-point barrier.
In February 2023, the Sacramento Kings beat the Los Angeles Clippers 176-175 after double overtime, marking only the second time in NBA history that two teams have scored at least 175 points in a game. As one of the producers of KG Certified pointed out in the video above, it’ll likely take double or triple overtime for a team to reach 200 points.
However, the Kings and Clippers’ historic game showcased that two teams can go back and forth in an unprecedented scoring battle, allowing one the opportunity to put up 200 points on the scoreboard.
Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce admit defeat, claim no way to fix the All-Star game
On the latest episode of the Ticket and the Truth podcast, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce discussed the state of the All-Star Game. The Hall of Famers did not suggest any changes to the format and instead embraced the reality that players won’t put effort into the annual showcase. Garnett floated the idea of handing out massive monetary incentives to the winning team but was quickly shot down by Pierce, who said,
“If I’m making 50 million, what’s it gonna take for me to go in this All-Star and change my mindset? Because right now, I’m on vacation.”
Garnett recalled a story about Michael Jordan’s stern warning to the players in the East locker room before the 1988 All-Star game in Chicago. Per the Boston Celtics icon, the six-time NBA champion said,
“Hey, look. This Chicago. You motherf**kers don’t want to play, sit the f**k down. We ain’t going to give this product to the people of Chicago to come out, pay their hard-earned money to watch the All-Star game.'”
Garnett added that the All-Star game allowed young players to showcase their talent against the best in the league and build a name for themselves. However, social media has helped them build a massive brand, and they no longer need the All-Star weekend to become household names.
Garnett and Pierce’s grim discussion is the unfortunate reality about the All-Star game. The NBA has to implement radical changes to the format to reinvigorate the players and the fans’ interest in the once-great event.
