This is the first year in which the NBA has allowed captains to pick teams, but the NBA will not be airing the draft on tv.
Wednesday during an appearance on NBA TV, NBA commissioner, Adam Silver explained why the draft will not be aired.
“Should there be a public selection? Yes, it would be more fun if we had that kind of draft. On the other hand, I recognize that in picking a team to perform in the here and now, it’s a little different than drafting. There was a sense from the players that it put them in an impossible position, where they’re picking one player over another—in part, not because they necessarily think that player is better than another player, maybe because they have a personal relationship with the player. Invariably, if they just did it as a pure draft, guys would say, ‘Oh, I can’t believe such and such was selected before that player”.
Silver does make a point in which players might feel they should have been picked higher in the All-Star draft and some captains might pick players based on if they are teammates or if they have a personal relationship with one another.
To see Adam Silver give his reasoning, click on the next page.