Ranking the 5 events of 2019 NBA All-Star Weekend

4. MTN DEW ICE Rising Stars game

This was really difficult to not put higher on this list. The Rising Stars game has fielded plenty of stars before they blossomed into All-Stars, but these rosters are as stacked as I can remember. The format stays the same with Team World taking on Team USA in a exhibition that will yield as little defense as you will see all season.

Normally this would rank at the four spot without thinking twice, but this year seems different. Names like Ben Simmons, Luka Doncic and Deandre Ayton on Team World against Donovan Mitchell, Jayson Tatum, De’Aaron Fox and Kyle Kuzma (among others) provides the NBA another spotlight for their young, prosperous talent to showcase their skills.

The best we can hope for is the similar trajectory the All-Star game takes; get the dunks and lack of defense out of the way in the first half then have the game’s best players go at it in the final minutes of a close game where the effort and defense escalate.

The player storylines are awesome, too. Last year’s Rookie of the Year race in Mitchell vs. Simmons resurfaces. Luka vs. Trae once again. Ayton vs. Marvin Bagley II, the first two picks in the 2018 NBA Draft. With Dirk Nowitzki and Dwyane Wade coaching the teams and preferably mic’d up, this game will be nice precursor to the weekend.

Winner: Team USA