2026 nba all star gameThe event, held at the Intuit Dome near Los Angeles, will move to Tinseltown on Friday for a jam-packed weekend featuring a host of superstar players.
Some of the league’s newest faces kicked things off with the Rising Stars Showcase on Friday. with the number 1 pick cooper flag out through All-Star break due to injuryThe young squad will be headlined by a Rookie of the Year contender Con Knuppel.
On Saturday, the league’s top-tier talent will showcase their skills in the 3-Point Shoot-Off, Shooting Stars Contest and Slam Dunk Contest. most notably, damian lillard Will compete in the 3-point contest despite an Achilles injury that has kept him out all season. The two-time 3-point champion will be challenged Donovan MitchellWho leads the league in 3-pointers, including other sharpshooters tyreese maxi And devin booker.
After all, three on Sunday star studded teams A new format will take the stage that pits American players against international players. can do Victor Wembanyama Lead Team World against Kevin Durant And team stripes? or will happen Anthony Edwards Ruining the fun by leading team stars?
Our NBA insiders gave a sneak preview of what to see at the 2026 NBA All-Star Weekend, including who they pick to win each event.
The experts’ choices were voted on by a panel of NBA insiders.
rising stars | saturday skills | usa vs world tournament
Knueppel and Queen usher in the next wave of rising stars
Friday, 9 PM ET (Peacock)
there will be a cooper flagIn this event -sized zero, sidelined with leg sprain The No. 1 pick of 2025 for the duration of the weekend. Also, former No. 2 pick Alex Sarr He will be absent from Friday’s match due to a right hamstring strain, which will be keep him out for two weeks. The game should be a fun spotlight for a still-strong 2025 draft class Con Knuppel, dylan harper And VJ Edgecombe All in different teams. Stephen CastleThe reigning Rookie of the Year, one of the top players of the second year. Originally, I would have picked Flagg’s team to win the mini-tournament, but after he was sidelined, I think I’ll take Team Vince, which also includes Edgecombe. derrick queen And Matas Buzzelis. Whether I’m right or wrong, I’m willing to bet that history won’t remember this being the case. –Jeremy Wu
Game 1: team melo vs team austin
Game 2: Team Vince vs Team T-Mac
Game 3: Winner Game 1 vs Winner Game 2
Expert Picks: team melo
Celebrity Takeover!
Friday, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN)
The Celebrity Game returns with familiar faces on the court, but what’s special this year is that two current NBA governors will be participating – phoenix sun‘ Matt Ishbia and charlotte hornets‘ Rick Schnall, whose total age is 103 years.
However, history says that when it comes to the celebrity game, age is just a number. Former US Secretary of Defense Arne Duncan was regularly seen playing in his late 40s/early 50s (he won MVP in 2014 at age 49).
NFL star wide receivers Keenan Allen and Amon-Ra St. Brown will also take the court, as well as ESPN’s own NBA insider Shams Charania. Luckily, the trade deadline has passed, meaning Charania can play phone-free. –Anthony Garib
Introduction to 2026 @NBAAllStar #RafflesCelebGame Roasters
🏀 Friday, February 13 | 7p ET | espn
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– ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) 3 February 2026
Dame time for great team-ups, high-flying dunks and All-Star Saturday
Saturday, 8 p.m. ET (NBC, Peacock)
Can Spida spoil Dame’s time?
Any of the eight 3-point contestants can warm up for one minute and make the winning score. But based on each participant’s 3-point percentage on wide-open 3s this year, according to NBA Advanced Stats, the favorite should be Donovan Mitchell (50% on wide-open 3s). norman powell (49%) and jamal mare (48%). bobby portisKon Knueppel and Tyrese Maxey are in the low 40s, while Devin Booker is all the way down at 31%.
The eighth contestant is a wild card: Damian Lillard has not played an NBA game since tearing his Achilles in the 2025 postseason. But Lillard won the championship in 2023 and 2024, becoming the first three-time winner in the 21st century. (Larry Bird and Craig Hodges won three times each in the 1980s and 1990s, respectively.) – Zack Cram
Expert Picks: damian lillard
New faces and a family affair for the dunk contest
This is not the most star-studded field in dunk contest history, and three of the four contestants have barely dunked in NBA games. jackson hayes He is a seven-year veteran and has taken a good share of slams from the center position, but is a second-year forward Keshad Johnson and beginners carter bryant And jace richardson Single-digit dunk lengths have been recorded this season.
At least this area has star pedigree. Richardson’s father is Jason Richardson, who won consecutive Dunk Contest crowns in 2002 and 2003, a few years before Jess was born. –Cram
Expert Picks: Keshad Johnson
When you wish on a shooting star
In place of the Skills Challenge, the NBA is bringing back the Shooting Stars competition, which previously ran from 2004 to 2015 and consisted of three-person teams: a current NBA player, an NBA legend and a WNBA player.
There is no WNBA presence in the renewed competition, instead a second current player joins the three-man teams. Two aspects of this year’s teams stood out: Team Harper – Ron Harper as an NBA veteran and Dylan and Ron Jr. as current NBA players – provided a compelling family element, while the first-ever All-Star jalen johnsonTeam Cameron’s presence is ironic, given that Johnson controversially left Duke University in the middle of his freshman season to focus on his preparation for the draft. –Cram
Expert Picks: Team Knicks
International vs Domestic? What to see in the All-Star Game
Sunday, 5 p.m. ET (NBC, Peacock)
In its latest effort to inject some life into the NBA’s midseason showcase, the league is leaning into NBC’s Olympics coverage by deploying a Team USA vs. The World format. However, sadly, the three-team round-robin tournament has already lost some key participants giannis antetokounmpo, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander And Stephen Curry Ruled out for the All-Star Game, others will likely follow.
Still, there’s at least some hope that this format can inspire some interesting moments this weekend. There is only one guard (Jamal Murray) on the World roster, and he is the only player under 6 feet 8 inches tall. This may also be his final All-Star appearance Lebron JamesSo maybe he’ll come to play, want to go out with a bang. Either way, it will serve as another referendum on Adam Silver’s ongoing efforts to make the event more competitive. –Tim Bontemps
Game 1: stars vs world
Game 2: Stripes vs Game 1 Winner
Game 3: Stripes vs Game 1 Loser
Game 4: All-Star Championship
Expert Picks: team world
