Date & Time: Sunday, February 16, 2025, 8:00 p.m. ET
Venue: Chase Center, San Francisco
Where to watch the match: TNT Sports & Discovery+
Our Finals Prediction: Team Chuck 25, Team Shaq 21
Odds: Team Shaq +155, Team Chuck +165, Team Kenny at +375, Team Candace +650
The 2025 NBA All-Star Game will introduce an exciting four-team tournament format and will take place on Sunday, February 16, at the Chase Center in San Francisco.
NBA on TNT analysts Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, and Kenny Smith drafted All-Star players for three squads - Team Chuck, Team Shaq, and Team Kenny. The final team, representing the Rising Stars Challenge winner, will be Team Candace and seven-time WNBA All-Star Candace Parker will be the general manager.
The new format, designed to make the All-Star Game more appealing to fans, has gotten mixed results from the players.
"I hate it. Absolutely hate it," said Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant. "It's terrible. All-Star games, formats changing. All the formats have been terrible in my opinion. We've been trying to bring that flair back somehow with the All-Star weekend, but I think we should just keep it traditional.”
"You got to do something," Lebron James added. "Obviously, the last couple of years have not been a great All-Star Game that Sunday night.
"It's not just the All-Star Game. It's our game in general," James continued. "There's a lot of f***ing 3s being shot. So it's a bigger conversation than just the All-Star Game."
The four head coaches for the NBA All-Star Game will come from the coaching staffs of the teams with the best regular-season record in each conference through games played on Sunday, Feb. 2. The head coach of the leading Eastern Conference team and the head coach of the leading Western Conference team will each coach an NBA All-Star team.
Team Shaq is the All-Star favorite at +155, according to BetMGM, a popular sportsbook in New York. Team Chuck is a close second at +165 odds followed by Team Kenny at +375, and Team Candace at +650.
Gilgeous-Alexander leads the NBA in scoring (32.7 points per game) while shooting 52.8% from the field. The frontrunner to win this year's MVP award, the Toronto native became the ninth player in league history to score at least 50 points three times in a seven-game span earlier this month.
The Oklahoma City point guard has led the Thunder to the best record in the Western Conference and has eclipsed 30 points per game in 31 games this season. Gilgeous-Alexander will be joined by three of the NBA's top big men - Nikola Jokic, Victor Wembanyama, and Karl-Anthony Towns on Team Chuck.
Although Team Shaq is the betting favorite to win the mini-tournament amongst reliable NBA betting sites, look for Gilgeous-Alexander to continue his red-hot scoring while leading his squad to the tourney championship.
Team Shaq is the tournament favorite and is led by future Hall of Famers Lebron James, Steph Curry, and Kevin Durant. KD is the leading scorer with 26.9 points an outing, while James and Curry are averaging 24.5 and 23 points, respectively.
Boston Celtics' dynamic duo - Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown - join guards Damian Lillard (Milwaukee) and James Harden (LA Clippers) to form a lethal offensive roster. Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving will replace injured teammate Anthony Davis in Sunday's tourney.
Although scoring points should not be a problem for Team Shaq, rebounding and defense could be areas of concern. Curry, Durant, and Tatum will be the top shooters from behind the arc, while Brown is the top defender.
In a shooting contest with the first team to 40 points advancing to the championship game, the veteran-laden squad will have to sink baskets at a high rate to compensate for a porous defense.
Team Chuck boasts two of the league's top scorers in Gilgeous-Alexander and Jokic, and an imposing frontline consisting of second-year phenom Victor Wembanyama and Karl-Anthony Towns.
Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young, who replaced injured Milwaukee Bucks playmaker Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Cleveland Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell will serve as the three-point snipers. Other players on the roster include Pascal Siakam (Indiana) and Alperen Sengun (Houston).
This squad features a collection of current and blooming stars possessing all the ingredients to capture the tournament trophy. Gilgeous-Alexander will headline a two-headed monster that will give headaches to opposing teams on both ends of the court.
Team Chuck should be able to impose its will inside the paint and have enough three-point sharpshooters to upset LeBron and the tournament favorites.
Minnesota Timberwolves superstar Anthony Edwards will spearhead a Team Kenny squad that pundits give little chance to claim the tournament title. Edwards is the league's fifth-ranked scorer with 27.2 points a game and shoots 42.1 behind the three-point line.
The youthful roster also includes Jalen Brunson (New York), Jaren Jackson Jr. (Memphis), Jalen Williams (OKC), Darius Garland (Cleveland), Evan Mobley (Cleveland), Cade Cunningham (Detroit), and Tyler Herro (Miami).
Despite not boasting the star power of Team Shaq and Team Chuck, Team Kenny has a good mix of offensive and defensive standouts. Brunson averages 26.3 points and a whopping 7.5 assists, while Garland (43.4), Herro (38.8), and Cunningham (35.2) are all capable three-point shooters.
Team Kennedy is a dangerous squad with the talent to upset one of the favored squads to capture a spot in the championship game.
The winner of the Rising Stars Challenge will be the fourth team in the mini-tournament. Some of the first and second-year players competing include Brandin Podziemski (Golden State Warriors), Jaime Jaquez Jr. (Miami Heat), and Amen Thompson (Houston Rockets).
Other notable players include Scoot Henderson (Portland Trail Blazers), Stephon Castle (San Antonio Spurs), and Dalton Knecht (L.A. Lakers), Mac McClung (Osceola Magic), Leonard Miller (Iowa Wolves), and Reed Sheppard (Rio Grande Valley Vipers).
• All-Star Semifinal #1, 8:20 ET
• All-Star Semifinal #2, 9:10 ET
• All-Star Championship, 10:00 ET
Finals Prediction: Team Chuck 25, Team Shaq 21
