Are All-Star games still good?

By: Callen C Robertson

The best stars in sports come together to play each other once a season, but with the most recent NBA All-Star game having a team get over 200 points for the first time ever, some fans are debating if we should pull the plug on all All-Star Games? I will dive into the game itself and other events such as the Home run derby, the Dunk contest, and the 3-point contest.

The all star games are still, and always will be, the way to show who people think the best players are. Even if nobody tries their hardest. Besides, they have a good reason to not play their hardest, to not get injured. This is more common with the NBA All-Star game, then it is the MLB All-Star game.

The NFL has already done away with the Pro-Bowl (which is their version of an All-Star game). And replaced it with separate contests and a flag football game. This was a terrible choice. The viewers have gone down since they changed it from the Pro-Bowl to the Pro-Bowl games. They should definitely change it back to the Pro-Bowl or even the NFL All Star Game.

The 2023 home run derby bracket

The MLB All-Star game is in pretty good shape. All the players play their hardest and it is the most like a real game. The decision on who starts and who comes off the bench is kind of questionable, but other than that the game is going great. The Home Run Derby is also pretty good. There are crazy upsets throughout the derby. For instance the 7 seed Julio Rodriguez beat the 2 seed Pete Alonso with a crazy 41 home runs. The next round he was defeated, this was an outcome many were not expecting. Another crazy part of the most recent home run derby was when Randy Arozarena went to the finals of the derby, but he hadn’t taken a practice swing of the bat in 45 minutes and was not ready for the final round.

One of the best parts about the NBA all star game is that you get to see a ton of crazy plays that you don’t get to see normally. Especially from stars like Lebron, who don’t do the dunk contest. Some of the craziest plays of the most recent all Star Game Include Damian Lillard making 2 half court shots, Tyreese Haliburton making five 3-point shots in a row, Bam Adebayo throwing the ball at Nikola Jokic while he wasn’t looking and then hitting a 3. This was both a smart play and a hilarious one. Paul Goerge bounced the ball off of the floor up to Lebron for a dunk, Trae Young bouncing the ball to himself between Kevin Durant’s legs for a layup, Luka Doncic Nikola Jokic and Shai Gilgeous Alexander bopping the ball up in the air and making the whole way across the court with no dribbles.

The NBA Dunk contest was not at its best this year. With a G League player winning it for the second year in a row. (For those of you who don’t know what the G League is, it is essentially the NBA version of the Minor Leagues.) The dunk contest would be so much better, but stars like Lebron decided they would never do the Dunk contest, Lebron would win hands down if he participated.

Mac Mcclung was the dunk contest champion for the 2nd year in a row despite him being a G League player.

The 3-point contest thrived this year. It was a thrill with all the top shooters participating, and one of the best coming out on top for the second year in a row. In addition to the 3-point contest, this year they added a new event. Stephan vs Sabrina. This was another 3-point contest, but it was just between Stephan and Sabrina. It was a little unfair because Sabrina had to shoot from the NBA three point line which is farther away. She did get to use WNBA basketballs which made it a little more fair. The whole thing was kind of a Lose-Lose situation for Stephan. If he lost he would get made fun of and if he chose not to do it, then he would get made fun of. And even if he won he wouldn’t get his record back for best 3-point shootout score. The previous year Sabrina made her every shot except for her first. So for Stephan to get his record back he would need a perfect score. He did win, but he did not achieve a perfect score. This is why there is still an argument to be made saying that she is still a better shooter.

The NHL All-Star weekend consists of an All-Star game, and a Skills challenge. The winner of the Skill challenge receives $1 million. Adding an incentive is a good idea, and the other contests should catch on. The All-Star game is still played like a real game which is very good.

In conclusion All of the All Star Games should stay and the NFL should bring back the Pro-Bowl despite some of the problems.

Author Bio: Callen is a 6th grader who loves movies and sports.