The NBA’s famed midseason extravaganza is coming again to Los Angeles however in a brand new venue.
The league and crew introduced that the 2026 NBA All-Star Sport will happen within the Intuit Dome, the soon-to-be-new dwelling of the Los Angeles Clippers. The sector is presently below building in Inglewood but it surely’s slated to open earlier than the 2024-25 season.
Whereas this would be the fourth exhibition sport for town of Los Angeles, it will likely be the primary hosted solely by the Clippers, who’ve been co-tenants with the Lakers at what’s now generally known as Crypto.com Enviornment because it opened in 1999.
The previous Staples Middle is the one enviornment that’s dwelling to 2 NBA groups, however the long-awaited building of the Intuit Dome will imply that every one 30 franchises could have their very own place to name dwelling.
It is customary for sports activities leagues to carry their main showcases to the latest or not less than probably the most just lately renovated venue as quickly as attainable, and the NBA is not any totally different. The Indiana Pacers, with hefty investments from native and state funds, completed a two-year renovation on Gainbridge Fieldhouse earlier than the present season and can host the upcoming All-Star Sport in February. (Initially generally known as Conseco Fieldhouse, the Pacers’ dwelling additionally opened in 1999 after years in Market Sq. Enviornment.)
The 2025 sport can be hosted on the Chase Middle, the present dwelling of the Golden State Warriors which opened in late 2019 and introduced the Dubs again to San Francisco after spending almost forty years throughout the Bay in Oakland.
The arrival of the All-Star Sport in Inglewood additionally speaks to how a lot the fortunes have modified for the Clippers franchise over time. Donald Sterling, the ex-owner of the Clippers who was exiled from the NBA virtually a decade in the past, was infamously low-cost with the crew and even hitched his wagon onto the Lakers with a view to keep away from constructing a house for the Clippers. (He additionally moved the crew to L.A. with out the league’s permission, which created an acrimonious relationship with different homeowners from the bounce.) Even when Steve Ballmer hasn’t had overwhelming success because the crew’s governor, his time as proprietor has improved the crew’s standing across the NBA, and that has gone a good distance towards getting the Intuit Dome off the bottom.
