CLEVELAND -- While the Cleveland may currently lack NBA star power, that won't be the case in three years.
On Tuesday, the Cavaliers announced that Quicken Loans Arena will be the home of the 2022 NBA All-Star Game. The team's announcement came on the very court where the game will be played, in an announcement attended by Cavs owner Dan Gilbert and NBA commissioner Adam Silver.
The 2022 NBA All-Star Game will double as the 75th edition of the annual exhibition. The game will be played on Feb. 20, 2022.
Cleveland has been linked as a potential host city for the NBA All-Star Game dating back to the 2016 announcement of the current ongoing renovations at Quicken Loans Arena. Although the original hope was that the city would host the exhibition in either 2020 or 2021, those games were later awarded to Indianapolis and Chicago, respectively, as Cleveland dealt with a delay to its
Still currently ongoing, the renovations at 'The Q' are expected to be finished in time for the start of the 2019-20 NBA season. Last month, Cavs owner Dan Gilbert provided an additional $45 million to the project, bringing the cost of the project -- which is being split between the team and city -- to $185 million.
Last year, the agreed upon 50-50 split of costs between the Cavs and the city nearly fell apart after the Ohio Supreme Court ruled the deal must head to a public vote -- threatening the initially anticipated start time, as well as Cleveland's chances of potentially hosting an All-Star Game as a result of the renovations. But after a group named the Greater Cleveland Congregations withdrew its petition opposing the transformation, Gilbert and the Cavs recommitted their $70 million to the project, with the city pledging the other $70 million.
Cleveland last hosted the NBA All-Star Game in 1997. The Cleveland Indians will host the 2019 MLB All-Star Game at Progressive Field.