The NBA All-Star Game has a history of tinkering with the format. The league did away with the traditional Eastern Conference vs. Western Conference game in 2017, instead opting to do an All-Star draft with the leading vote-getters. In 2020, the NBA changed the end of the All-Star Game from a running clock to a target score. These alternations proved a few years of fun, but the effort in last year’s NBA All-Star Game was so pathetic that the league has now announced its boldest changes yet to the mid-season showcase of the league’s best players.
The 2025 NBA All-Star Game format has been completely revamped. It is now a four-team tournament with games up to 40 points. The league’s 24 All-Stars have been split into three eight-man teams, and the fourth team will be the winner of Friday’s Rising Stars challenge. The two winning teams will play for the All-Star Game championship, which is a funny phrase to consider. It all goes down Sunday, Feb. 16 from the Chase Center in San Francisco.
The NBA kept All-Star voting the same as it has been, with the starters being selected frmo each conference via the fan vote (50 percent), players vote (25 percent), and media vote (25 percent). The coaches selected the All-Star reserves to fill out the 12-man rosters in the East and West. TNT’s ‘Inside the NBA’ crew of Shaquille O’Neal, Charles Barkley, and Kenny Smith then each drafted eight-man rosters that will compete in the All-Star Game tournament.
Here’s how the 2025 NBA All-Star Game tournament is going to work, plus the rosters for the three teams drafted by the TNT crew.
2025 NBA All-Star Game tournament format and prize pool, explained
The 24 NBA All-Stars were put into a pool and drafted onto three teams by Shaquille O’Neal, Charles Barkley, and Kenny Smith. Those three teams will join the winner of the Rising Stars Challenge games, featuring rookies and sophomores, for the All-Star Game championship.
NBA All-Star Game tournament games are played up to 40 points, with the game ending when one team reaches or surpasses that number.
The players are playing for money. Per NBA.com, each player on the championship-winning team will receive $125k, players on the second-place team each get $50K, and playesr on the third- and fourth-place teams receive $25K.
2025 NBA All-Star Game tournament teams and rosters
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Shaq’s OGs
Kenny’s Young Stars
Chuck’s Global Stars
- Nikola Jokić (Denver Nuggets)
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder)
- Victor Wembanyama (San Antonio Spurs)
- Pascal Siakam (Indiana Pacers)
- Alperen Sengun (Houston Rockets)
- Karl-Anthony Towns (New York Knicks)
- Donovan Mitchell (Cleveland Cavaliers)
- Trae Young (Atlanta Hawks)
NBA All-Star Game 2025 date, start time, TV info, and more
Date: Sunday, Feb. 16, 2025
Location: Chase Center in San Francisco
Start time: 7 p.m.
TV and streaming: TNT
