As scrutiny over the NBA All-Star Game swirled, Anthony Edwards expressed skepticism that this year’s new format would finally improve the level of competitiveness.
“It is what it is at this point,” Edwards, 24, said a day before the game at Los Angeles’ Intuit Dome.
But Sunday’s USA vs. World competition proved to be a success — and Edwards was among those to rave about it afterward.
“I like this format,” the Minnesota Timberwolves star said. “I think it makes us compete.”
Sunday marked the debut of the latest All-Star Game format, which pitted top U.S. players against international NBA stars in a round-robin mini-tournament.
Three teams — Team Stars, Team Stripes and World — competed against each other over four, 12-minute games, with Edwards’ Team Stars emerging as the event’s champion.
Edwards collected MVP honors after totaling 32 points on 13-for-22 shooting with nine rebounds, but he credited Victor Wembanyama of the World team for establishing the intensity level.
“He set the tone. It was definitely competitive with all three teams,” Edwards said. “I feel like the old heads played hard, too. They were playing real good defense. But [Wembanyama] set the tone, man, and it woke me up for sure.”
Traditionally, the All-Star Game has featured a single 48-minute game, with stars from the Eastern Conference facing stars from the Western Conference.
But interest in that format waned as defense and effort became increasingly sparse, and the game hit rock bottom in 2024 when the East beat the West, 211-186.
The NBA has tinkered with different ideas in recent years, including in 2025 when it debuted a four-team mini-tournament.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver hoped competing for national pride in this year’s USA vs. World format would serve as a motivator for players — and it seemed to work.
“It was a pretty good display of basketball. Better than last year, in my opinion,” the French-born Wembanyama said.
“It’s a game we love. It’s a game I personally cherish. So being competitive is the least I can do.”
The format was partly inspired by golf’s Ryder Cup and partly by hockey’s well-received 4 Nations Face-Off, a nine-day tournament between the U.S., Canada, Finland and Sweden that replaced last year’s NHL All-Star Game.
The NBA divided its 28 All-Stars (including injury replacements) into three teams, with Team Stripes made up of veteran U.S. players, Team Stars composed of younger U.S. stars, and World starring the likes of Luka Doncic, Nikola Jokic and Wembanyama.
The round-robin games yielded plenty of intrigue.
Team Stars versus World went to overtime before the prior prevailed.
Team Stripes’ De’Aaron Fox drilled a game-winning 3-pointer to defeat Team Stars.
And Kawhi Leonard erupted for 31 points on 11-of-13 shooting in 12 minutes to lead Team Stripes past World.
The sprier Team Stars then routed Team Stripes, 47-21, in the final.
“I think it was definitely a step up in the competitive department compared to last season,” said Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant, who competed for Team Stripes.
“The intensity to start the games was good. Both teams were competing and playing defense. … I think we did what we’re supposed to do for the fans.”
Still, not everyone was sold on the global format replacing East vs. West for good.
Speaking before the game, 22-time All-Star LeBron James voiced his affinity for the traditional set-up.
“The world is gigantic over the U.S., so just trying to figure out how that makes sense, but I don’t want to dive too much into that,” James said. “East-West is great. We’ll see what happens with this.”
Leonard shared a similar preference after totaling 37 points and nine rebounds over 34 minutes in Sunday’s festivities.
“I thought it was good, but I still think going back to East-West will be great. I think guys will compete still,” Leonard said.
“If the format is making us play well, then we can keep going.”
