EuroLeague All-Star Game could work only in one way / News - Basketnews.com

Marshall Glickman and several players have supported the idea of a EuroLeague All-Star Game. In his latest BN+ article, Giorgos Kyriakidis explores the event's history, what current trends in Europe and the NBA have shown, and how the venture can be successful despite numerous obstacles.

Credit: Tolga Adanali/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images Credit Tolga Adanali/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images

For those old enough to remember how basketball under FIBA worked back in the 20th century, the European All-Star Game concept will ring a bell.

According to the FIBA website, the idea of forming a team of European All-Stars originated in 1963. FIBA Secretary General William Jones proposed to have the winner of the European Cup of Champions take on an All-star team consisting of other players from that competition.

Real Madrid were the current champions in 1964 and agreed to host the game, where the European selection team prevailed 91-87.

The event was a success and became a regular fixture in the FIBA calendar and would be known as the European Basketball Festival. Those games ran until 1995, with the players at times competing in exhibitions serving as farewell games for all-time greats.

FIBA came up with another name for its flagship exhibition game and adjusted it to fit its American prototype. Thus, the FIBA EuroStars was introduced in 1996, considered the equivalent of an NBA All-Star Game, with both teams made up of the top players from clubs throughout the continent.

Credit Imago Images

The event was held at the very end of the year and also included a 3-point contest. Players from leagues on the east side of Europe (Greece, Turkey, Israel, ex-USSR, and ex-Yugoslavia countries), regardless of the country of origin, went up against those who competed in countries on the west side of the Old Continent (Spain, France, Germany, Italy, etc.).

Diversity was also paramount in the selection process, which aimed at allowing several different European basketball schools to be represented.

The big advantage was that it facilitated fans' identification since players who were club teammates were also on the same side in the ASG. In addition, those games included some really interesting matchups and plays- and in some cases, even some serious defense.

That version lasted four years, with the final game being played in 1999. Since then, no significant efforts to revive a European (or EuroLeague) All-Star Game have been noted.

The whole issue seems to be a thing of the past, while several countries and leagues (France, VTB, Greece, Turkey) are trying to keep the tradition alive.

But in order for an All-Star Game to be held with the presence of the best players from around the continent, one needs to be able to provide a clear and concise answer to the following questions:

Sign up for our premium membership and access exclusive content Subscribe