- Why an All Star Game?

Welcome back to the Bill Bradley Collective, where this week the panel examines the NBA’s decision to go forth with their annual All-Star game March 7, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Your hosts return an unanimous verdict opposing the game being staged, but not before detailing the economic factors responsible for the inevitability of the league’s decision to proceed with the event. The game’s integrity and watchability are put under the microscope when considering a weekend tailored to the fan being held before so few and the vocal indifference of many of the weekend’s expected participants. If you can’t prevent it, why not preview it, so the Collective conclude with some takes on who to expect to see suiting up for the East and West sides. But first the rants, where Zak attempts to autopsy the substandard performance of Super Bowl LV’s referees and the broader issues afflicting officiating across sports; Ed frames Urban Meyer’s latest in a long line of indiscretions in the context of continued malfeasance in the NFL hiring process; finally Andrew describes the sordid actions behind the resignation of a Biden deputy press secretary less than a month into the administration’s term.