2020-21 NBA season won’t have an All-Star Game due to Covid-19
The upcoming NBA season is going to be the first one since 1999 to be held without a normal All-Star Weekend. Since this annual event brings together the League’s best players from different teams and is very popular with fans, it is very difficult to hold it safely during the Covid-19 pandemic. As a result, the 2021 NBA All-Star Game was rescheduled for 2024.
Coronavirus is completely changing the NBA
The NBA All-Star Game is an annual event, which became a tradition and dates back to 1951. It is a spectacular tournament loved by all basketball fans and a great opportunity for talented players to get an All-Star title. Nowadays, All-Star Weekend is not just a sports competition, but a great show. Fans, athletes, and basketball media representatives vote to choose the most popular and talented players to join the All-Star teams. Every year this event gathers a huge number of fans who want to enjoy an exciting spectacle.
The 2020-21 season was not planned to become an exception, the NBA All-Star Game was scheduled for February 12-14 and had to be organized by the NBA’s Indiana Pacers in their hometown Indianapolis. There were a lot of predictions about the 2021 All-Star, many experts believed that Giannis Antetokounmpo and LeBron James would become East and West All-Star captains.
But the coronavirus is completely changing the NBA, the 2020-21 season won’t have an All-Star Weekend. The League made a decision to postpone to 2024 and will be held in Indianapolis on February 16-18, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver told in the latest NBA news release:
“While we are disappointed that the NBA All-Star Game will not take place in Indianapolis in 2021, we are looking forward to the Pacers and the city hosting the game and surrounding events in 2024,”
The main reason for postponing one of the most beloved events is safety, it is very difficult to provide safe conditions for players, who come from different teams and cities for several days and then return to their teammates, it is just too risky. And since there is no opportunity to gather a lot of spectators in the arena, there is no point in putting on such a grand show. Besides, postponing All-Star Weekend gives the League a possibility to make their schedule less condensed. That’s why fans will have to wait until the 2021-22 season to enjoy the next NBA 2022 All-Star Game in Cleveland.