On Sunday, the NBA All-Star Game tips off at the brand new Intiut Dome in Inglewood. It’s the first time in 15 years the event is being held in Southern California, so tickets are understandably a little tough to come by. But, much like the Super Bowl, this event has become a whole lot more than just a game on a Sunday afternoon.
“It’s a multi-day celebration of of basketball, culture, music, and entertainment,” says Evan Bruno, Vice President of NBA Experiences.
No professional sports league is as driven by star power as the National Basketball Association is, and during All-Star Weekend they do not skimp on making the heavy hitters available for fans.
“We have NBA Crossover, which is really our fan festival that starts on Thursday and doesn’t close until Sunday,” says Bruno. “It’s really our hub, chock full of entertainment, watch parties, there are scheduled appearances, there are autograph lines. There are ways to really interact with players both present and past. So, the weekend is built for that level of access.”
Take, for example, Night With A Legend. That’s a dinner on Friday night at Scopa Italian Restaurant, which is owned by celebrity chef Antonia Lofaso, and she’s not even the legend referred to in the title.
“We’re having an intimate and premium dinner with a few NBA legends, including Shawn Marion and Jason Williams,” says Bruno.
Sunday morning also features the Mascot Breakfast, where the mascot of every NBA team that has one shares a meal with families (and yes, the shenanigans are exactly as hilarious as you’d expect from a bunch of mascots allowed to run wild).
“That’s honestly my favorite event of the weekend,” says Bruno. “To watch NBA mascots entering a couple of hundred kids with a full breakfast, giveaways, prizes, and seeing the faces of the kids having a great time, that’s just awesome.”
The best part of it is, all of the weekend’s events are separately ticketed, so basketball die-hards can be part of the fun without having to break the bank for a game pass. For a full list of the weekend’s activities, click here.
If you’d rather hang out in your home the NBA All-Star Game has also returned to NBC and Peacock. Starting on Friday night, you can catch all the action here:
Castrol Rising Stars Game – Friday, Feb. 13, 6:00 p.m. (Peacock/NBC Sports Network)
HBCU Classic (Hampton vs. North Carolina A&T) – Friday, Feb. 13, 8:00 p.m. (Peacock/NBC Sports Network)
All-Star Saturday Night (3-Point Shootout, Dunk Contest) – Saturday, Feb. 14, 2:00 p.m. (NBC/Peacock)
NBA All-Star Game – Sunday, Feb. 15, 2:00 p.m. (NBC/Peacock)
The league is trying out a new format for the All-Star Game this year, USA vs. The World. There will be three teams, two made up of domestic players and one featuring international All-Stars, playing a round-robin tournament of 12-minute games.