Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving believe $1 million 1v1 tournament a ‘solid idea’ to spice up All-Star weekend

Kevin Durant and fellow stars competed in the new NBA All-Star format, but are open to new ideas to improve fan engagement.

Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving believe $1 million 1v1 tournament a ‘solid idea’ to spice up All-Star weekend

A $1 million NBA All-Star 1v1 tournament could interest Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and others

Even though the 2025 NBA All-Star weekend is over, the discourse surrounding the league is what changes are needed to bring the spark back to the weekend’s festivities. The league clubbed Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving as part of an eight-member team which would battle three other teams to become the winners.

That tactic was to bring in a bit more competitiveness from the players. The league and the NBPA met with players to talk about the importance of giving the fans a show. All that talk and the new format did nothing as the games were again a shooting and skills show rather than being competitive.

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During the weekend though, veteran reporter Rachel Nichols was speaking with players about the weekend’s festivities. One common question she asked the likes of Kyrie Irving, James Harden, Giannis Antetokounmpo and others was about the possibility of them competing in a 1v1 tournament.

They unanimously agreed to the idea as they felt it would bring a different level of competition. Another Fox Sports reporter, Melissa Rohlin was at Kevin Durant‘s time in the media facilities. When she asked the same question, he replied.

I think it would be a solid idea. It won’t be too bad with the cash prize.

Kevin Durant said

The 15-time All-Star clarified that a cash prize would be a good incentive as other intangibles such as pride won’t matter. Rohlin and Nichols asked them after the upstart Unrivaled League showed that the 1v1 tournament can become a success.

Napheesa Collier beat several opponents on her way to win the inaugural Unrivaled 1v1 tournament and received a $200K cash prize. The way she and the rest of the WNBA stars competed has caught the basketball world’s attention.

Kevin Durant and others could participate for $1 million cash prize

A few moments after these interviews went live, Front Office Sports received new information about the 1v1 tournament. Even before the 2025 NBA All-Star weekend tipped off, those in the league circles were talking about possible changes.

The upstart Unrivaled league recently held a one-on-one tournament, won by cofounder Napheesa Collier for a $200,000 grand prize. One spy told FOS that a $1 million prize has been discussed for a one-on-one event at NBA All-Star Weekend.

FOS wrote

That means there are discussions going about on how to improve the weekends activities. Fans and analysts have been extremely critical about the casual approach from players. The league had brought in a cash prize for the All-Star game.

However, this 1v1 tournament could make that cash prize a worthwhile approach. The tournament, a la the Unrivaled version, could see the top superstars go at each other. The winner could take home a nice paycheck along with bragging rights at least for that season.