Imagine this lineup: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic, Nikola Jokic and Victor Wembanyama, all on the floor at the same time as teammates.
MVPs. Scoring champions. NBA champions. Triple-double machines. Defensive wizards. International players, all together in one highly decorated, incredibly accomplished, flat-out-scary lineup the likes of which probably has not been seen too many times in basketball history.
The NBA seems on the brink of making it possible.
Changes to the All-Star format are most certainly coming, once again, and the plan that the NBA has settled on is one that has U.S. players going up against players from the rest of the world in a tournament setting. Think Ryder Cup golf or 4 Nations Face-Off hockey, and it just so happens that this season's All-Star weekend at Inglewood, California, is smack in the middle of another national-pride sporting event — the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympics.
"I talk to a lot of fans, and All-Star Games for whatever reason take on particular interest around basketball," NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said. "I think we should be able to create something that's fun, exciting, engaging. Not expecting guys to play the way they would in the finals necessarily or even in a playoff game, but yet to go out, play hard, put on a good show for the fans."
The plan, which isn't yet finalized, calls for a three-team tournament: two American teams and one international team, all with eight-man rosters. The reason: Roughly two-thirds of NBA players are American and one-third are not, which is why the NBA thinks it'd be fair to give Americans two-thirds of the roster spots.
"Hopefully, it's going to be better," said Jokic, the Denver star.
It has become almost an annual
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