2027 NBA All-Star Game in Phoenix: What to know about Suns hosting All-Star Weekend
The 2027 NBA All-Star Game is headed to Phoenix, the NBA announced on Thursday.
It will be the fourth time Phoenix has hosted the NBA All-Star Weekend and the first time since 2009.
Here's what we know about the 2027 NBA All-Star event in Phoenix, which will feature an All-Star Game of course but include lots of other competitions, exhibitions and showcases featuring the NBA's best players. It all will put Phoenix in the center of the NBA spotlight for the weekend, bringing tourism to Arizona and the eyes of the basketball world.
The 2024 NBA All-Star Game was in Indianapolis last month.
More: Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O'Neal and Hall of Famers sparked Phoenix's past NBA All-Star games
How the NBA All-Star Game is awarded
The NBA All-Star Game location for each season is usually awarded after a bidding process.
Teams and cities make bids to the league explaining their interest in hosting the event, and several factors are taken into consideration in awarding the game.
The Oklahoman recently reported that for cities to be considered as an NBA All-Star Game host, they must have at least 650,000 square feet of convention center space, at least 7,250 hotel rooms and three 5-star hotels, and at least 75 nonstop domestic flights and at least 20 international flights. Greater Phoenix, no stranger to hosting major sports events, checks all of these boxes easily.
Suns and Mercury owner Mat Ishbia formally applied for NBA and WNBA All-Star games in May 2023.
The Mercury will host this year's WNBA All-Star weekend July 18-20.
Where are the next NBA All-Star games?
San Francisco will host the 2025 NBA All-Star weekend with the Golden State Warriors as the host team.
Los Angeles will host the 2026 All-Star weekend. The Clippers, who will open their new $2 billion Intuit Dome, located near SoFi Stadium, for the 2024-25 season, will be the host team.
This year's NBA All-Star Game was in Indianapolis, with the Indiana Pacers as host team, while the 2023 game was in Salt Lake City with the Utah Jazz playing host.
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What does the NBA All-Star Weekend include?
The NBA All-Star Game has turned into NBA All-Star Weekend, a 3-day spectacle of events and competitions showcasing the best players in the league as well as celebrities, rising stars and much more.
There is typically an NBA All-Star Celebrity Game on Friday night, as well as a Rising Star game featuring some of the NBA's best young talent.
Saturday night includes a skills challenge, 3-point contest, slam dunk contest and more.
This year there was a G League Up Next game early Sunday, with the weekend culminating in the NBA All-Star Game on Sunday night.
Exhibitions about basketball usually run throughout the weekend at convention centers near the All-Star Game site.
Phoenix's NBA All-Star Game history
Phoenix is no stranger to hosting NBA All-Star Games. This is the fourth time the city has hosted NBA All-Star Weekend.
The team first hosted the game in 1975 at Veterans Memorial Coliseum, the former home of the Suns. The East earned a 108-102 win over the West in that game with the New York Knicks' Walt Frazier being named the game's MVP.
Phoenix next hosted the event in 1995 at their current facility, then called America West Arena, with the West getting a 139-112 win over the East. The Sacramento Kings' Mitch Richmond was the game's MVP.
The last time Phoenix hosted the All-Star Game? 2009.
The West earned a 146-119 win that year at then-US Airways Center, with the Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant and the Phoenix Suns' Shaquille O'Neal sharing MVP honors.
It is the only time a Suns player has been named the game's MVP.
Footprint Center, the current name of the Suns' arena, is the host of the 2027 game.
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When will the 2027 NBA All-Star Game take place?
The NBA has not yet announced a date for the 2027 NBA All-Star Game, or the weekend festivities.
It has announced that the 2025 NBA All-Star Weekend will be from Feb. 14-16, 2025 at Chase Center, the home of the Warriors.
It has also announced that the 2026 NBA All-Star Game will be from Feb. 13-15, 2026 at the Intuit Dome, the new home of the Clippers.
So, if the league follows the same schedule pattern with the game being in the second full weekend in February, the All-Star Weekend in Phoenix would be Feb. 12-14, 2027.
Duane Rankin contributed to this story.
Reach Jeremy Cluff at jeremy.cluff@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: NBA All-Star Game 2027: What to know about Phoenix Suns hosting event
