UPDATE 4:30 pm: Break out the beads, David Stern has made it official — the 2014 NBA All-Star Game will be in New Orleans.
“There is no better place to celebrate and showcase the NBA than in New Orleans, a city with a rich tradition of hosting major events that is second-to-none,” Stern said. “Our 2008 NBA All-Star festivities proved a terrific experience for everyone involved, and we anticipate 2014 will be even better.”
12:45 pm: Are you ready for some gumbo and hoops?
David Stern, new Hornets owner Tom Benson and a bunch of NBA brass are in New Orleans Monday to announce that the city will host the 2014 NBA All-Star Game. The Times-Picayune was the first to confirm the long-standing rumor.
Getting an All-Star game in the city was part of the lease renegotiations between the league and the state of Louisiana, which owns the New Orleans Arena. It is that new lease — which includes building upgrades and renovations — that cleared the way for the sale of the team to Tom Benson. The deal was the NBA had a decade to put an All-Star Game back in the city, but it was expected to be sooner rather than later.
New Orleans hosted the 2008 All-Star Game, the first major sporting event in the city following hurricane Katrina. The 2013 All-Star Game is in Houston. It is expected the 2015 All-Star Game will be in New York, although both the Nets with the new Barclay Center and the Knicks with a renovated Madison Square Garden want to host.
