# Did Victor Wembanyama Save the NBA All-Star Game… While Adam Silver Looks Weak on Tanking? | On The Ball with Ric Bucher

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/on-the-ball-with-ric-bucher-711886/did-victor-wembanyama-save-the-nba-all-star-game-while-adam-silver-looks-weak-on-tanking-on-the-ball-with-ric-bucher
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/on-the-ball-with-ric-bucher-711886/did-victor-wembanyama-save-the-nba-all-star-game-while-adam-silver-looks-weak-on-tanking-on-the-ball-with-ric-bucher.md
Podcast: [On The Ball with Ric Bucher](https://stenobird.com/podcast/on-the-ball-with-ric-bucher-711886)
Published: 2026-02-19T07:14:25+00:00
Episode link: https://shows.acast.com/bucher-and-friends/episodes/did-victor-wembanyama-save-the-nba-all-star-game-while-adam
Audio file: https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/f66edc52-c9ac-4e17-bf90-6f1121579b75/e/6996b8514c238f5dca35170d/media.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/on-the-ball-with-ric-bucher-711886/episodes/did-victor-wembanyama-save-the-nba-all-star-game-while-adam-silver-looks-weak-on-tanking-on-the-ball-with-ric-bucher
Duration seconds: 1766

## Resource

NBA All-Star Weekend was this close to being declared dead—until Victor Wembanyama flipped the entire vibe, shamed everybody into competing, and turned a “jumped-the-shark” event into must-watch hoops. On this episode of On The Ball , Ric Bucher breaks down why the All-Star turnaround matters, what it revealed about the league’s real hierarchy , and why Adam Silver’s public tough talk (including the nuclear “eliminate the draft” idea) lands as hollow compared to the era of David Stern . Ric also dives into the league’s messy optics: tanking , gambling partnerships , half-empty arenas, influencer-first priorities, and the growing sense that the NBA’s “brand showcase” is replacing the game itself—right up until Wemby decided otherwise. Then Ric shifts to the off-court theater: Stephen A. Smith flirting with a presidential run (and why sports platforms + politics are a dangerous credibility cocktail), plus Ric’s take on LeBron James’ retirement fog —including a wild, hypothetical endgame that involves NBA expansion , Las Vegas , and a final-season father-son spectacle with Bronny James . Time Stamps / Chapters 00:00 — Intro: “Cooking with gas” + where to find Ric Bucher 00:41 — Ric’s new book: The Value of Being Coachable (pre-order info) 01:20 — United We Cast Network shows: Full Court Passport , Finding the Seams , Pacific Rims 02:03 — Was All-Star Weekend cooked? The “dead event” narrative 02:18 — Tanking panic: Adam Silver hints at eliminating the draft 02:46 — David Stern vs. Adam Silver: who actually had the hammer? 05:14 — Stern’s punishments: Sprewell / Joe Smith / Malice at the Palace 06:21 — Silver’s biggest power move: Donald Sterling (and why it was “easier” than it looks) 07:06 — The mood was bad: NBA Europe confusion + teams openly gaming losses 07:52 — Half…

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