Sixers' Andre Drummond, Nick Nurse in favor of new All-Star Game format after it got 'a little stale'

Keith Pompey, The Philadelphia Inquirer on Dec 19, 2024

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PHILADELPHIA — Sixers center Andre Drummond, a two-time NBA All-Star with the Detroit Pistons, doesn’t have a problem with the new format for the 2025 All-Star Game.

Instead of a single game and two teams, the event will feature three games and a four-team tournament on Feb. 16 at the Chase Center in San Francisco.

“I think it’s cool,” Drummond said. “I mean, it’s different from what I’m used to. But it’s just trying to do different things to kind of bring more attraction to All-Star Weekend, because it has gotten a little stale. It’s been the same thing for so many years.

“So I think they’re trying to make it a little more entertaining and more fun for guys to come out.”

The 24 All-Stars will be divided into three eight-player rosters. The fourth squad will feature the Rising Stars champion. Two teams will compete in semifinals, and the winners will advance to the championship game.

At the 2020 NBA All-Star Game in Chicago, Nick Nurse, then the Toronto Raptors coach, led Team Giannis.

“Listen, I think that they’ve changed the format a lot here recently, right?” said Nurse, who’s in his second season as the Sixers head coach. “… I coached the first Elam Ending, and that was, like, that was some of the best basketball I’d ever been a part of in my life. I mean, that was a collection of guys that were — it was awesome.

“I didn’t really pay that much attention last year to it, but obviously there were a lot of reports about the game wasn’t good to watch last year. So, I mean, I think it’s smart of them to take some steps forward to try to make it better.”

Season of giving

Drummond hosted 10 local youths from the Victory in Norf foundation to a shopping spree at SNIPES Sneakers and Apparel on Cottman Avenue on Thursday evening. He surprised each youth with a $500 SNIPES gift card and guided them throughout the store to fill up their shopping bags.

“I do it every year,” Drummond said. “I started doing it in Chicago. I had a partnership with SNIPES where I would bring families out to do a little shopping spree for Christmas, because holiday are very important, especially for me, too, being a kid who always looked forward to the holidays. You know my mom not really having to most to give us what we wanted, but did her best.

“So for me, just to have the impact on some of these kids and families’ lives to shed a little holiday joy is always good to do.”

In another Thursday season of giving event, the Sixers and the Giant grocery store company surprised 25 local youth members from Methodist Services at the team’s practice facility.

Peter Dinwiddie, the Sixers executive vice president of basketball operations, held a mock press conference to announce one-day team contract for each participant.

The youth received customized jersey, toured the facility, participated in a basketball clinic, and received co-branded gifts from the Sixers and Giant. Sixers guard Reggie Jackson, Franklin and Squad 76 also surprised the youth with a gift distribution and group photo.