The fact that the Lakers’ Anthony Davis registered the clinching point for Team LeBron with a free throw naturally turned off some, most notably Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid. The same was true for the fact that Davis’s free throw followed a failed coach’s challenge by Nurse after uncharacteristically heavy referee involvement, for All-Star conditions, throughout the fourth quarter.

Yet there was no disputing how much energy the new format gave a game that has increasingly troubled the league office in recent years. Silver himself, in March 2019, once described the previous round of big All-Star format changes — instituting a player draft and abolishing the East vs. West concept — as putting “an earring on a pig.”

“None of us knew what to expect,” James said. “But throughout the whole fourth quarter and at the end of the game, everybody was like, ‘That was pretty damn fun.’”

“The change helped the whole experience,” Lowry said, even though the narrow defeat dropped his personal record in All-Star Games to 0-6.

Lowry, of course, was referring to the in-game experience. Nothing could have completely offset the somber tone that prevailed over what is typically a celebratory convention for the league.

As James put it, given Bryant’s immense stature in the game, anything other than a steady stream of tributes and a melancholy vibe “would be uncivilized.”

Kawhi Leonard of the Los Angeles Clippers took home the first All-Star most valuable player trophy to bear Bryant’s name after leading Team LeBron with a game-high 30 points. Everyone on Team Giannis wore No. 24, in Kobe’s honor, while everyone on Team LeBron wore No. 2 — Gianna Bryant’s number.