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Bill Simmons Reveals His Idea To 'Fix' NBA All-Star Weekend

Originally posted on The Spun | By Andrew Gould | Last updated Feb 18, 2025 10:36 AM ET

Bill Simmons proposed a completely revamped NBA All-Star weekend with real ramifications.

Every year, critics complain about an exhibition contest not meeting their standard of competition. The NBA keeps tweaking the format, switching to a four-team tournament this year that drew some negative reviews from players and pundits.

On The Bill Simmons Podcast, The Ringer founder pitched a modified weekend with the potential to be even more controversial. Simmons wants the All-Star Game to determine which conference receives home-court advantage in the NBA Finals.

"This is the best I've ever felt I'm about the fix," Simmons said. "It needs to be East vs. West. We also need stakes. If you make home-court the prize, you go to a 40-minute game. Go FIBA rules so it moves faster and feels different."

Simmons suggested an eight-on-eight All-Star Game on Sunday. Only players from the conference's top-five seeds are eligible. [The East's top-five teams had nine All-Stars this year, and the West's had six.]

"Everyone who's in the Sunday game is actually going to care about home-court advantage," Simmons continued. "So I have it seven on each side, plus an eighth person who's a commissioner pick."

The former ESPN personality would also move the Three-Point Contest from Saturday to Sunday. On Saturday, the eight remaining All-Stars eschewed from the actual game will face the Rising Stars. Each player from the winning team would receive $250,000.

Van Lathan asked Simmons what he'd do about veteran All-Stars upset about being relegated to Saturday's game. Simmons wasn't deterred.

"Then guess what? You don't get to f*****g play in the All-Star Game anymore," he responded. "That's the other thing with this. Oh, the game's not good enough for you? Don't f*****g come next year. You're not eligible. That's it. Let's put real pressure on these dudes. This is an honor and a privilege to be in this game."

Simmons' solution may make things worse. From 2003 to 2016, MLB used the All-Star Game to determine which league received home-field advantage in the World Series. It was one of the least popular stipulations in the history of North American sports.

The NBA All-Star Game not mattering is probably better than creating unnecessary stakes that make it matter far more than it should.

This article first appeared on The Spun and was syndicated with permission.

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