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What's the story?
In an attempt to improve the competitiveness of the All-Star Game, the league has increased the amount each player of the winning team will be receiving.
In case you didn't know...
NBA has come up with a new format for All-Star this season in which the top voted player from each conference will be selected as captains. These two captains will then select their own roster from a pool of players.
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The heart of the matter
According to ESPN's Chris Haynes, each player from the winning team will receive $100,000, and the losing team players will pocket $25,000. Most players were unaware of the change, but all have overwhelmingly agreed with the salary hike and think that it’s a game changer.
"Well, I would like to think so," Boston Celtics' forward Al Horford told ESPN. "I think guys will definitely take the game more seriously. In the last couple of years, the games haven't been good, and we're all aware of that. Regardless of that, I think guys are going to come out and compete. But that's a big incentive, for sure. We're going to be diving for loose balls out there."
Kyrie Irving echoed his fellow teammate's remarks as he said, “That'll certainly make it more interesting. That's a huge difference."
The 5-time NBA All-Star and captain of Team Stephen, Stephen Curry also thought that the idea is a game changer. "That's significant. For some players, they just want to see [the game] being worth their time."
LeBron James drafted Kevin Durant and fellow starters Irving, Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins. Paul George was voted in by commissioner Adam Silver after an inopportune season-ending injury to Demarcus Cousins.
Team Curry selected starters Giannis Antetokounmpo, DeMar DeRozan, James Harden and Joel Embiid.
What's next?
The All-Star game will be played on Feb 18th at Staples Center.
Author's take
The complaints have intensified over the past few years about the players not taking the game seriously enough. The players show no enthusiasm on the offensive end of the floor while rarely playing any kind of defense. This incentive given by the league could change that dramatically and could give us an All-Star match worth the hype.
