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The 2020 NBA All-Star Game was one of the best in recent memory, with teams playing defense, players taking charges, and fans being treated to an intense, competitive fourth quarter.
With the game receiving praise from players and fans alike, the league will use the same format that honors the late Kobe Bryant in the 2021 All Star Game. The NBA announced the details of the upcoming All-Star festivities:
The NBA will again honor the late Kobe Bryant at March 7 All-Star Game with incorporating 24 points into the calculation of the final target score. The same format was used in 2020.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 18, 2021
The All-Star Game will feature:
*Captains and Elam Ending scoring with a target score of 24 in Kobe Bryant's honor
*Skills Challenge and 3-Point Contest beforehand
*Dunk Contest at halftime
*More than $2.5 million to support HBCUs as well as COVID-19 care, relief and vaccines pic.twitter.com/JNf1fwpfOt
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) February 18, 2021
This year's game comes after much debate about whether it should be played, but the NBA is going ahead with it.
Last year, the NBA honored Bryant by changing the game format in his honor, using an Elam Ending that saw teams play to a final target score in the fourth quarter, which was untimed. The score was determined by taking the leading team’s score after three quarters and adding 24 points to it in honor of Kobe’s jersey number from 2006 to 2016.
This year’s All-Star Game will be held on March 7 in Atlanta, and with a similar format, the game could once again become competitive in the fourth quarter.
Last year, with Team Giannis taking a 133-124 lead over Team LeBron after three quarters, the final target score was set at 157. Team LeBron ended up storming back and taking a 157-155 win after a hard-fought fourth quarter. The ending, however, was a little anti-climactic, with Team LeBron’s Anthony Davis going to the free-throw line with his team ahead, 156-155, and sealing their victory by making one foul shot.
It’s perhaps the one aspect of last year’s format that the league should consider changing, as the thrilling game was deprived of a potential game-winning shot.
Aside from the revamped format, the 2020 All-Star Game also featured other tributes to Bryant, such as the All-Star Game MVP Award being named after the former Los Angeles Lakers guard and players from Team LeBron and Team Giannis wearing the jersey numbers of Bryant and his daughter Gianna.
