INGLEWOOD, Calif. — The biggest winner at the 2026 NBA All-Star Game was not Anthony Edwards or the young USA Stars team.
It was the fans.
For the first time in too long, we got a competitive All-Star Game with reasonable defense, real shot making and the kind of effort and energy everyone has been craving.
Let’s hand out some grades from the All-Star Game and All-Star Weekend.
USA vs. World Format: A+
It’s this simple: It’s not USA vs. the World that was the key, this worked because the players bought in.
“I think it was definitely a step up in the competitive department compared to last season,” Kevin Durant said.
Part of that was simply the format of four one-quarter games. The traditional East vs. West All-Star Games were usually competitive in the fourth quarter if the game was close. What this format did was essentially create a series of fourth quarters. That, combined with the players buying in — led by Victor Wembanyama — and you end up with a competitive and entertaining All-Star product.
“I liked it,” Wembanyama said. “I wouldn’t be against this format in the future, and I wouldn’t be against the regular East versus West either.”
“I think it makes us compete because it’s only 12 minutes, and the three different teams separate the guys,” Anthony Edwards said. “I think it was really good.”
“I thought it was good, but I still think going back to East-West will be great,” Kawhi Leonard said. “I think guys will compete still.”
Highlights: NBA All-Star Championship Game
Watch the championship game between USA Stars and USA Stripes that puts a bow on NBA All-Star Weekend.
Leonard hits on the key question going forward: Will the players buy in in the future? Let’s be honest: Because the USA vs. World concept worked this year doesn’t mean it will work in future years.
“We wanted to play hard,” Tyrese Maxey said. “It doesn’t matter what the format was, I came in, I’m going to play some defense. I’ll score when I can, but I want to play hard, bring energy, get some steals, and have fun.”
The last time the NBA had a competitive All-Star Game was in 2020, the year they switched to the target score system for the fourth quarter, but when that format returned the next year it was a dud (because the fourth quarter wasn’t close). The same thing could happen here with USA vs. the World, although the idea of four one-quarter games has merit. The league could tweak some things (10-minute quarters?), but it all hinges on the players buying in, continuing to care and playing with passion again.
The bottom line for spectators: The new format passed with flying colors.
Championship Game: D
After three great games — the Edwards vs. Wembanyama duel that went to overtime in the first game; Edwards tying the game and then De’Aaron Fox winning it in the second; then Leonard going off for 31 in the third — the last game flopped.
The veterans looked a little tired with their third game in a row and came out cold, while the youngsters were hot — it was 12-1 in the blink of an eye. Soon, the bad defense and jacked-up 3-pointers returned, reminding us of the bad old days. It was just one blip in an otherwise entertaining night, but it was less than ideal to have such a high of a night end on a flat note.
Kawhi Leonard: A
Kawhi Leonard was so good that he got MVP votes even though his team lost.
“It was great. Happy that Adam (Silver) let me in,” Leonard said of the All-Star experience in his home arena, where he was added after the initial vote. “That’s what the home crowd wanted to see. I’m glad I was able to do something in that game.”
Leonard has played as well as anyone in the NBA since Dec. 1, and for the season is averaging 27.9 points and 6.4 rebounds per game, shooting 38.3% from 3-point range. He blew those numbers away in just 12 minutes in one game.
The die-hard Clippers fans on The Wall at Intuit loved it.
Victor Wembanyama: A
It’s this simple, he set the tone.
Wemby came out and scored the first seven points for the World Team in the first game and was flying around on defense — he was competing. The game wasn’t physical like an NBA regular season game (let alone a playoff game) but it doesn’t have to be for guys to challenge each other defensively.
MVP Anthony Ewards credited Wembanyama for how the game was played.
“He set the tone, and it was definitely competitive with all three teams, I feel like,” Edwards said. “I feel like the old heads played hard, too. They were playing real good defense.”
Anthony Edwards: A
On Saturday, when asked how competitive the All-Star Game would be, Edwards said, “It is what it is.”
On Sunday, the players came to play — and Anthony Edwards stepped up to meet the moment.
The spark started by Wembanyama lit a fire that brought out Edwards’ intensity, and he was the best player on the court in each of the three games he played — which is why he got to hoist the Kobe Bryant All-Star MVP Trophy.
You know you’re having a good night when 2 Chainz wants to hang with you postgame.
World Team: Incomplete
Victor Wembanyama was brilliant. Nikola Jokic was not. But the reality is, we did not see the lineups we all wanted because Giannis Antetokounmpo (calf) and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (abdominal strain) were injured, and Luka Dončić played five minutes in the first game and none in the second (Jokic also sat out the second World game). If this format returns, hopefully we get a full world squad and we can see what that looks like.
Damian Lillard: A
The highlight of All-Star Saturday night was Damian Lillard not just returning to the court — he’s been out all season recovering from a torn Achilles — but then winning the 3-Point Contest, which is always the highlight of All-Star Saturday night.
Lillard is one of the game’s biggest stars and one of its best people. Seeing him in the Portland uniform again and knocking down 3-pointers again just felt heartwarming.
Also, it is time for the NBA to recognize that the 3-Point Contest is the highlight of Saturday night and put it last in the show. Don’t end with the up-and-down Dunk Contest, end with the event that has the biggest names and the most drama consistently every year. The 3-Point Contest is the star of All-Star Saturday night and it’s time to treat it like that.
Dunk Contest: C-
There are people who will think this grade is too high. Maybe. I have always thought that the dunk contest plays better in person than on television. So maybe my bias shows through a little.
I would describe the 2026 Dunk Contest as “meh.” Or, mid if you prefer.
And that is with all due respect to Keshad Johnson, who danced his way to the win and did his best to put some spark in the event.
Johnson dances way to Slam Dunk Contest title
Watch Keshad Johnson’s full Dunk Contest performance that set him above the rest at NBA All-Star Weekend.
There is no “fix” for the Dunk Contest, other than getting star young players to start doing it again, and good luck — that ship has already sailed.
John Tesh: A
I’ll be honest, when NBC announced that John Tesh was going to play “Roundball Rock” — the famed score he wrote as the intro to the NBA on NBC, a song linked to Michael Jordan and the NBA glory days of 30 years ago — I cringed a little. Too much of a lean into nostalgia, and I didn’t think this would work.
I was wrong. John Tesh rocks.
