5 Fixes to Save NBA All-Star Weekend

This year's NBA All-Star weekend was by most accounts a disaster. 

The Slam Dunk Contest was boring because no one cared about the dunkers. The same goes for the three-point shooting contest; the Three-Point Shootout had as many clanks as makes. 

The one contest that was worth watching was rushed through, the Taco Bells Skills Challenge. 

Finally, the game itself had a disastrous first half, and it was only saved by a nice comeback effort by the Eastern Conference in the second half. 

All-Star weekend is broken. Here are five ways to fix it. 

Bring Back H.O.R.S.E.

I don't mean to beat a dead horse, but the NBA should consider bringing back the H.O.R.S.E. contest, but with a different set of rules and with a chance for some fan involvement. 

The NBA tried resurrecting it before, but it became more of a long-distance competition than a real trick-shot competition. The video above shows what the game could be. It's just about getting the right contestants. 

What would make the contest incredibly cool is for fans to submit videos of themselves making trick shots. Players would also submit YouTube videos of themselves making trick shots. Dunks would be disallowed. 

The NBA would select 64 players from the field who would then compete to be the People's Champion. All of the competitions would be posted on YouTube for the fans to watch. 

On All-Star weekend, you would have four contestants in the H.O.R.S.E contest. Three of the players would be NBA players. The fourth would be the People's Champion.

It's the one contest where an ordinary fan could put him or herself on the level of NBA players. 

Promote the Skills Challenge More

The Taco Bells Skills Challenge is the one contest in which the NBA is drawing compelling players. 

If you look at the three major contests and rank all the participants, Kevin Durant was the biggest star to compete, but the next seven biggest stars were all in the skills contest. 

The league should have done more to push this contest, since it was the only one with real star power in it. Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Tony Parker and Rajon Rondo were all contestants, but the NBA rushed through it to get to the starless dunk contest. 

The league needs to promote the contests that have stars in them.

Add a Second Line to the Three-Point Contest

The NBA could do something to add a little strategy to the three-point contest.

Generally speaking, the contest hasn't been interesting for a few years now. It lacks star power, and it lacks strategy. It's a bunch of people we don't know walking around in a half circle clanking nearly as many balls off of the iron as they make. 

So, what if the NBA added a second line?

It would be about five feet behind the three-point line. Rather than have the last ball in the rack be a two-point money ball, a player could have a whole rack of money balls on a second rack. Then, the players could determine if they wanted to "play it safe" or gamble. 

It would add an element of strategy and give players who struggle in the first rack a chance.

Give the Dunk Contest Winner a Prize Worth Winning

LeBron James has never been in the dunk contest. Neither has Dwyane Wade, Derrick Rose or Kevin Durant. Can you imagine a dunk contest with those four instead of the four insignificant dunkers who were in the last one?

So, that raises the question: How do you get players interested? Would money work?

According CBS.com's Royce Young, it could be, based on what LeBron James told him.

"It’s not me," James said Friday. "I’m not a dunk contest type of guy. I’m an in-game dunker. I kind of improvise during the game.''

But what if there was a prize? LeBron was asked if he'd take part if someone tossed a $1million winner-take-all bounty on it.

"Then I'd reconsider," he said. "Wouldn't you?"

That might seem excessive, but that's a fraction of what the NBA and TNT make off of the weekend. Another option might be having Sprite make a $1 million donation to charity in the winner's name. 

Award a Defensive MVP in the All-Star Game

Part of the reason the All-Star Game gets ridiculous is the lack of defensive effort. 

I get that it's an exhibition game, but when players part like the Red Sea and just let opponents get to the rim, it can be embarrassing.

Players that are great defensive players aren't encouraged to exercise their skill sets during the All-Star Game; they end up coming out and trying to be offensive players, and that's not the way it should work. 

One thing the NBA could do to change that to a degree is offer an award for Defensive Player of the Game. This wouldn't require players to foul and play physical, but it could be about players trying to get out in front of a transition game or take a charge or two. 

That could raise the overall standard of the game. Great offense doesn't look great when it comes against lackadaisical defense. It would help the integrity of the game's offense to give players some incentive to bring it on both ends of the court.