All-Star Weekend 101

02/14/2025

By: Jeff Yoder

It’s Friday!

Happy Valentine’s Day, team. It’s a weekend of star power coming up. The NBA All-Star festivities tip off tonight. We’ll have more NHL 4 Nations action on Saturday. The Daytona 500 brings racing back to the forefront on Sunday afternoon.

Upset Alert (NCAAW)

The No. 1 women’s team in the land was upset in a late West Coast rivalry last night. #6 USC handed #1 UCLA their first loss of the season (71-60), and USC’s Juju Watkins was unbelievable (38 pts, 11 rebs, 8 blk).

Letter Rip!

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NBA

NBA All-Star Weekend 101

New Format, New Names & Ample Entertainment — Everything You Need to Know for 2025 NBA All-Star Weekend

The stars are heading to San Francisco for the NBA All-Star Weekend, and there’s no shortage of storylines to watch over the next three days. Players like Victor Wembanyama (Spurs) will make their first All-Star appearances alongside some of the game’s legends. LeBron James (21st), Kevin Durant (15th) and Steph Curry (11th) are back again. There’s also history unfolding with Damian Lillard and Mac McClung aiming for never-before-seen 3-peats in the 3-point contest and dunk contest. Here’s a list of all the events

NBA All-Star Weekend

Friday Night

Celebrity Game (7:00 pm, ESPN)

Rising Stars (9:00 pm, TNT)

All-Star Saturday Night (8:00 pm, TNT)

Skills Challenge

3-Point Contest

Slam Dunk

NBA All-Star Game (Sun. 8:00 pm, TNT)

This year’s new format will attempt rejuvenate the All-Star Game and fix the lack of competitiveness from recent years. But will it work? There is no East-West division. Instead, three teams of eight selected by captains from the TNT crew — Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Smith — will compete in a three-game tournament. Each game will be played to a target score of 40.

NBA All-Star Rosters

NBA All-Star Week Check-In

Division Standings (Leaders)

East: 1. Cavaliers (44-10), 2. Celtics (39-16)

West: 1. Thunder (44-10), 2. Grizzlies (36-18)

Individual Stats (Leaders)

Points: S. Gilgeous-Alexander, OKC (32.6 ppg)

Rebounds: D. Sabonis, SAC (14.3 reb)

Assists: T. Young, ATL (11.4 ast)

Blocks: V. Wembanyama, SAS (3.9 blk)

3-Pointers: A. Edwards, MIN (220 Made 3s)

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NFL

What’s Next for Aaron Rodgers?

Jets Release Statement Intending to Part Ways With QB Aaron Rodgers

The Aaron Rodgers-Jets era began with hype and expectations higher than 30,000 feet, and it ends with a whimper. Rodgers played two incomplete seasons with New York and went 6-12 — that’s a worse winning percentage than his predecessor, Zach Wilson. He’s now 41 years old, and the Jets are moving forward.

“I personally want to thank Aaron for his time at the New York Jets. His arrival in 2023 was met with unbridled excitement and I will forever be grateful that he chose to join us to continue his Hall of Fame career… I wish him only the best in whatever he chooses to do next.” — Jets Owner Woody Johnson

Maybe there’s a team that wants his services as a veteran bridge QB (if he still wants to play). Raiders? Titans? Time will tell.

NFL: 4 Potential Landing Spots for 4-Time MVP Aaron Rodgers

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NASCAR

Daytona Loading

Qualifying Duels Set the Starting Grid for the 67th Daytona 500 (Sunday, 2:30 pm ET, FOX)

Welcome back, racing! It’s been a long winter for race fans of all kinds — from F1 to IndyCar and, of course, NASCAR. The 2025 NASCAR Cup Series series began last weekend, but the most iconic race of the year is about to really rev the engines. The 67th Daytona 500 drops the green flag this Sunday. The Great American race is 500 miles of left turns and aggressive driving at speeds over 200 mph. Last night’s qualifying duels set the lineup for Sunday. Chase Briscoe sits atop the pole, but 2022 winner Austin Cindric is also on the front row.

Bonus Car: This year’s Daytona 500 will feature a 41st car for four-time Indy 500 Helio Castroneves making his NASCAR debut.

Daytona 500 Starting Grid

Row 1: Chase Briscoe & Austin Cindric

Row 2: Bubba Wallace & Erik Jones

Row 3: William Byron & Chris Buescher

Row 4: Ty Dillon & Denny Hamlin

Row 5: Ross Chastain & Joey Logano

NASCAR: Paint Scheme Previews for Every Car in the Daytona 500

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NHL

Tkachuk Bros Lead USA

Tkachuk Bros (2 Goals Each) Lead USA Past Finland in Blowout Game 1 (6-1)

Night No. 2 of the NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off was a little less (scratch that, a lot less) competitive than Night 1. Finland scored first, but the U.S. ripped off six straight goals, including four goals in a third-period to finish off a 6-1 win. The brother duo of Matthew and Brady Tkachuk scored two goals each in family affair. After each team’s first outing, U.S. goaltender Connor Hellebuyck might be the x-factor in the competition. He had 20 saves and looked at the top of his game. We’ll see all four teams square off tomorrow (Saturday) for their second games

Watch: Tkachuk Brothers (4 Goals) Lead USA Over Finland (6-1)

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HIGHLIGHTS

NCAA Women’s Basketball

#6 USC Upsets #1 UCLA (71-60)

Juju Watkins (38 pts, 11 rebs, 8 blk)

USC Hands UCLA 1st Loss of the Season

NBA

Pelicans def. Kings (140-133, OT)

CJ McCollum Drops 43, Pels Snap 10-Gm Skid

PGA Tour

Denny McCarthy (-4) Leads Genesis Open