Every year the NBA hosts an All Star weekend where the main event is an All-Star game for the best 30 players in the league. This event is usually highly anticipated from players, fans, and celebrities. For players it is seen as an honor to be selected as an All star and play in the game. The fans and celebrities are excited to watch the best of the best compete in a light hearted exhibition game. Millions of people flock to whatever city the game is played to of course watch and be involved in the excitement the event brings to town. The weekend long event consists of competitions amongst the players, a celebrity game, and of course the all star game. It is always a fun time of year for any basketball player or fan. But this year is not like other years. As we all know we are in the middle of a pandemic and a few highly coveted players have spoken out and against the idea of an all star game this year. 

LeBron James, the face of the NBA, was the biggest name to speak out against the game being played. He said “I have zero energy and zero excitement about an All-Star game this year” in an interview with the press. Giannis Antetokounmpo, another big name in the league, agreed with Lebron saying he would rather “spend time with his family in times like this” according to CNBC.com. The last league superstar to share their thoughts on the games was Kawii Lennard. Lennard is known for being a quiet superstar and he simply said the league was putting “money over health.” These are not the only stars to speak out against the game but they are the biggest to do so. This would lead you to question if the league even cares about the wellbeing of the players.

Jayden Hogg, an Eleanor Roosevelt two sport athlete said he felt that it did not make sense to play the game this year because you “risk the players safety.”  He continued to say that this could “hurt teams drastically if a player caught COVID” while playing in the game. When asking Emmauel Matey, head JV basketball coach, he said that it was “irresponsible for them to play” and risk their actual season. They could potentially lose more money if the star players catch COVID playing in the unnecessary game.  Personally I agree with both Hogg and Matey. The league did not think this idea through and we can only hope for the best with the players.