The NBA All-Star Game took place on Sunday, and, much like it happens sometimes in other sports (including MLB), players took it easy and didn’t play with the same intensity of a regular-season game.
It’s a logical thing to do in such a long season in an exhibition game.
In the NBA All-Star Game, defense barely exists.
Last night, Team LeBron won 163-160 over Team Durant, with a game-winning basket by LeBron James.
MLB star Josh Donaldson had some words regarding the NBA All-Star Game that some basketball fans didn’t take very well.
“Baseball is the only legitimate All Star game in sports. You can’t go easy when a guy throws a 100. All the other sports besides hockey should stop having them. It’s actually embarrassing to watch,” he tweeted.
Baseball is the only legitimate All Star game in sports. You can’t go easy when a guy throws a 100. All the other sports besides hockey should stop having them. It’s actually embarrassing to watch.
— Josh Donaldson (@BringerOfRain20) February 21, 2022
Strong words for basketball fans, who surely enjoyed the weekend and saw some of yesterday’s stars in the process, including Michael Jordan.
Donaldson, who currently plays for the Minnesota Twins, implied in the replies that there is no defense in NBA All-Star Games.
MLB All-Star Game And Playing With A Purpose
MLB All-Star Games, after a 7-7 tie in the 2002 edition, used to have an incentive for teams involved: the winning league would have home-field advantage in the World Series.
While it did make some sense in theory, it wasn’t fair that the All-Stars were the ones to decide the fate of the team winning the pennant.
The arrangement lasted until 2016, when the World Series home-field advantage started to be determined by the winning percentage in the regular season.
The All-Star Game, therefore, remains an exhibition showing in which pitchers may go hard and pitch to the top of their abilities, but knowing that they will only cover an inning or two max.
Donaldson has a right to have his opinion, just as much as fans have theirs.
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