The NBA Rising Stars set the tone on Friday, February 13 in an engaging and entertaining display that culminated in a stellar performance by Philadelphia 76ers rookie VJ Edgecombe to lead Team Vince, like Vince Carter, to the Rising Stars championship. And as the NBA All-Star Game has faced widespread criticism for its lack of competitive spirit, let’s hope the league’s biggest stars take inspiration from the “rising” stars.
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In the semifinal round, Edgecombe scored his team’s final 10 points to win and led Team Vince with a combined 23 points in both games, including a pair of game-winning free throws in the championship.
“I appreciate people tuning in, including the Rising Stars game,” Edgecombe told reporters after the game. “We just try to make it fun, competitive, worth the time.”
Edgecombe was not alone. Overall, the entire group of 28 first- and second-year players who participated in Friday’s Rising Stars Game established a basic spirit of competition that has been sorely absent in the supposed gem of the weekend, the current All-Star Game.
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Did the rising stars unleash relentless competition at the playoff level? No, of course not. It wasn’t necessary. What matters here is that they didn’t do the minimum. They did not sleepwalk or loiter around the exhibit in a way that insulted the fans who invested their time and capital into the experience.
This is what’s crucial to the survival of the NBA All-Star Game and the All-Star Games of every major national sports league, if we’re being honest. There is a way to balance elevated proficiency without compromising safety or risking injury.
This is what the four Rising Stars coaches (Carter, Carmelo Anthony, Tracy McGrady and Austin Rivers) preached to their players.
“(The message) was to compete hard but be smart,” Rockets guard Reef Sheppard, who played for Team Melo, told reporters. “This All-Star weekend is supposed to be fun. At the same time, don’t go running. Compete and play, but be smart and have fun.”
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Said Bulls second-year forward Matas Buzelis, another emerging NBA star who combined to score 10 points in the two minigames for Team Vince: “We weren’t trying to just relax and cruise.”
The only shame about Friday night was that NBC understandably prioritized its Olympic coverage for its national primetime broadcast and was forced to relegate the Rising Stars showcase to the streaming-only Peacock broadcast, meaning a lot of fans missed the showcase.
Several players said they noticed the handful of NBA All-Stars who spent Friday night in cosmopolitan Los Angeles courtside at the Intuit Dome, enjoying the Rising Stars competition.
February 13, 2026; Inglewood, California, United States; Team Vince VJ Edgecombe (77) of the Philadelphia 76ers celebrates with teammates after defeating Team Melo in a NBA All Star Rising Stars championship game at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
In attendance were Donovan Mitchell of the Cavaliers, Scottie Barnes of the Raptors, De’Aaron Fox of the Spurs and Tyrese Maxey of the 76ers. They were all shown on the jumbotron to the applause of the fans present.
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It was the latter player who, in part, inspired Edgecombe.
“Tyrese is my dog, man,” Edgecombe said. “I thought, he’s not going to come and see if I’m not going to play hard. So I thought, I’m going to play hard so at least it’s not a waste of time.
“I know he has a lot of things he could probably be doing right now, especially being an All-Star. Tyrese is my dog. I love him.”
We hope Maxey and his fellow All-Stars follow these young players to give fans the showcase they deserve.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rising Stars set the tone for NBA All-Star weekend with fun exhibition