Jaylen Brown believes he has the fix to spark interest in NBA All-Star Weekend again.
The Boston Celtics star spoke to reporters Saturday ahead of his first-ever start in the NBA All-Star Game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Calif. With ratings for the weekend’s festivities going down the drain over the years, Brown put his creative hat on and pitched a new event to NBA commissioner Adam Silver.
Brown touted that a 1-on-1 tournament could be the answer. The Celtics star admitted that he’s been tuning into the 1-on-1 tournament hosted by Unrivaled that features several WNBA stars and believes a similar format could stoke the competitive fires among him and his peers.
“I actually love watching it, because it reminds me of the purity of the game,” Brown said. “It’s mano-a-mano. It’s got people on the court talking trash. You’ve got to play two sides. You’ve got to be the offensive player and the defensive player. I think that’d that to be great.”
Brown added that the event could allow some players to call out others they want to face, as fighters do in boxing and the UFC. The Celtics star even named players he would want to take on in such a contest. Brown’s hit list includes the likes of Luka Doncic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Brunson, and Donovan Mitchell.
The 2026 NBA All-Star Weekend hasn’t exactly been setting social media ablaze with memorable moments. The NBA dunk contest was a disaster that saw one contestant nearly suffer a concussion.
If the new USA-World format of the All-Star Game doesn’t save the weekend, Silver may want to give Brown’s idea a shot.
