Overview
- Kevin Durant said Luka Dončić and Nikola Jokić "don't care about" the All-Star Game and cited half-court shots and playful antics as evidence of low effort.
- Durant urged reporters to ask the World team about competing rather than focusing on U.S. veterans, noting he calls his group an "old head" team.
- He responded to Victor Wembanyama’s pledge to play hard by saying, "He said that last year too," and added that the impact of the new setup remains uncertain.
- This year’s event features a USA vs. the World round-robin at the Clippers’ Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, with two American squads and one international team.
- Durant’s remarks prompted national TV discussion of perceived double standards, including commentary from Andscape’s David Dennis Jr. about how effort critiques target Black American players.