Lead
Los Angeles hosted the 75th NBA All-Star Weekend across Inglewood and the Kia Forum from Friday through Sunday, culminating in a reworked All-Star Game at the Intuit Dome on Sunday, Feb. 16, 2026. The event week featured the celebrity game, Rising Stars, an HBCU Classic and a new three-team, round-robin All-Star format: two U.S. teams versus a World team in four 12-minute games. Saturday showcased the 3-point and slam-dunk contests plus the revived Shooting Stars competition with four former NBA players. This live-updates package captures results, context and the early reactions as the weekend unfolded.
Key Takeaways
- The 2026 All-Star marks the NBA’s 75th annual game, held Sunday at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California.
- The league introduced a three-team, round-robin tournament: three teams, four games, 12 minutes each; each roster carries at least eight players.
- Friday events included the Celebrity Game at the Kia Forum and the Rising Stars at Intuit Dome, where Team Vince defeated Team Melo.
- An HBCU Classic (Hampton vs. North Carolina A&T) was staged at the Kia Forum as part of the weekend programming.
- Saturday featured the 3-point contest, slam-dunk contest and the comeback of the Shooting Stars event with Richard Hamilton, Allan Houston, Corey Maggette and Ron Harper Sr.
- The new format schedules Game 1 between Team A and Team B, with the winner facing Team C and the loser meeting Team C in the penultimate game; top two records play a championship game.
- Los Angeles last hosted All-Star Weekend in 2018; the 2026 staging emphasizes fan activation across multiple sites in the L.A. metro area.
Background
The NBA’s All-Star Weekend has evolved from a single exhibition into a multi-day festival that blends on-court competition with entertainment and community events. Over decades the league has tested different formats — from East vs. West to team drafts and mini-tournaments — seeking both competitive meaning and TV-friendly moments. The 75th anniversary provided an occasion to redesign the weekend schedule, aiming to keep players engaged and give fans more meaningful short contests.
Los Angeles was chosen as host after previously staging the concentrated weekend in 2018; the region’s arenas, entertainment industry links and global fanbase made it a natural fit for the milestone year. The inclusion of a separately ticketed HBCU Classic reflects a broader NBA effort to highlight college programs and community partnerships during All-Star activities. Meanwhile, reviving legacy events such as Shooting Stars brings former league stars back into the weekend’s narrative.
Main Event
Friday’s slate opened with the Celebrity Game at the Kia Forum, drawing entertainers and athletes in a light-competition setting that warmed up local fans. The Rising Stars game moved to the Intuit Dome later on Friday, producing a competitive showcase that ended with Team Vince beating Team Melo for the event title. Simultaneously, the HBCU Classic between Hampton and North Carolina A&T concluded that night at the Forum, signaling the league’s push to integrate college-level storylines into All-Star Weekend.
Saturday centered on individual skill competitions. The 3-point and slam-dunk contests returned as marquee primetime features, while the Shooting Stars format — featuring four retired NBA names (Richard Hamilton, Allan Houston, Corey Maggette and Ron Harper Sr.) — reappeared after a hiatus. The short-game format and condensed timings were designed to increase pace and maintain broadcast momentum across blocks.
Sunday’s main competition moved to the Intuit Dome, where the league staged the new three-team, round-robin All-Star tournament made up of two U.S. teams and one World team. Each mini-game lasted 12 minutes and teams advanced based on win-loss records; the top two teams met in a final to decide the champion. League officials intentionally limited rosters to at least eight players to balance playing time and reduce load on stars already deep into a long season.
Analysis & Implications
The three-team round-robin format represents a deliberate shift away from the single-all-star exhibition toward a short-tournament model that increases competitive stakes. For fans, shorter games can concentrate action and reduce late-game blowouts that have historically dampened interest. For players and teams, the compressed schedule demands new load management decisions from coaching staffs and the league’s health teams.
Commercially, the format opens more broadcast windows and creates multiple high-profile matchups across the weekend, potentially boosting ratings and advertiser value. It also presents scheduling complexity: broadcasters and the league must coordinate timing so marquee players appear in prime slots without overtaxing them before the regular season resumes. Host cities like Inglewood benefit from extended visitor stays, hospitality revenue and global visibility tied to the NBA’s milestone year.
From a competitive integrity standpoint, limiting rosters to a minimum of eight players attempts to preserve player safety but could stretch bench depth during back-to-back mini-games. The round-robin results-to-final method reduces randomness inherent in single-game exhibitions yet still leaves room for tie-breakers or point-differential rules to determine final seeding, which the league must clarify for fans and teams.
Comparison & Data
| Year | Format | Game Length | Host |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Traditional East vs. West / Draft-style features | 48-minute standard exhibition | Los Angeles (Staples Center) |
| 2026 | Three-team round-robin (U.S. teams vs. World) | Four x 12-minute mini-games, then final | Inglewood (Intuit Dome / Kia Forum) |
The table highlights the departure from a single 48-minute exhibition to a multi-game format with shorter games in 2026. That shift is designed to compress high-intensity play into multiple spectator-friendly windows while preserving player availability across events like Rising Stars and skills competitions.
Reactions & Quotes
The format change “brings a different kind of urgency to All-Star Weekend,” league officials said in a weekend statement, noting the tournament aims to balance fun with competitiveness.
NBA (official statement)
Several former players and analysts noted the shortened games increase tempo and spotlight individual plays, which could improve television pacing and viewer engagement.
Basketball analyst commentary
Fans on-site praised the mix of competitive games and cultural programming, pointing to the HBCU Classic and celebrity events as highlights of the weekend experience.
Event attendees / social reporting
Unconfirmed
- Exact tie-breaker procedures for teams with identical records were not fully detailed in weekend materials and remained subject to league clarification.
- Final television ratings and full economic impact figures for the Los Angeles area were not available at the time of publication.
Bottom Line
The 75th NBA All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles tested a new competitive structure aimed at increasing stakes and broadcast momentum while preserving the festival atmosphere with community and legacy events. Shorter, high-intensity mini-games may make the weekend more watchable and create clearer competitive narratives, but they also require careful player-management and transparent tie-breaking rules.
For fans and stakeholders, the weekend combined on-court novelty with off-court programming such as the HBCU Classic and celebrity appearances, underscoring the NBA’s dual focus on sport and spectacle. The league’s next steps should clarify procedural details and publish post-event metrics on viewership and economic impact to evaluate whether this format will be adopted long-term.