Adam Silver says NBA mulling East vs. West for All-Star Game - ESPN

NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in an interview with Stephen A. Smith on ESPN's «First Take» that the league is considering going back to the East vs. West format in the All-Star Game this season, after having the top vote-getters in each conference serve as captains for the past several seasons.

«We're looking at some potential changes in format in Indianapolis this year,» Silver said, referring to the 2024 All-Star Game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. «Maybe a return to something more traditional in terms of how the teams are presented. We went to sort of this captain and draft notion, but clearly historically it was East vs. West. So that's maybe something we are looking at.»

Silver's comments come in the wake of the NBA's head of basketball operations, Joe Dumars, saying in a conference call with reporters last week that reviving interest in the All-Star Game, and All-Stars playing harder, is a priority for the league.

Silver admitted that the demands of All-Star Weekend, which is full of off-court events for players beginning as early as Thursday evening, take a toll on their energy by the time the game rolls around on Sunday night.

«The All-Star weekend is quite a spectacle,» Silver said. «I'm always sort of laughing because before the game even starts on Sunday afternoon, people are saying, 'This is the best ever!' And I'm like, 'We'll, we've got this game.' I'll take some fault for that because when you're there this year in Indianapolis, beginning essentially Thursday night and then through Sunday, I think it's an opportunity for this whole global basketball community to come together. Great legends of the game. Not just the All-Stars, but lots of players. I don't know how it works in other sports,