Miami Heat to host 2028 NBA All-Star Weekend, first time since 1990, per report

This will mark just the second time Miami has hosted the annual event in franchise history

Nov 9, 2026 at 2:42 pm ET • 1 min read

Miami is one of the sports world's most beloved event hosts. Super Bowls and National Championship Games are frequently held in South Florida, but for quite some time, the NBA's marquee regular-season event has been held elsewhere. The Miami Heat hosted All-Star Weekend in 1990, their second season in existence, but haven't hosted it since.

Well, that's about to change. Miami will host the event in 2028, after Phoenix does so in 2027, according to ESPN. The decision comes on the heels of widespread complaints about All-Star Weekends being held in smaller, less desirable cities to visit. 

In 2024, The Oklahoman, questioning why Oklahoma City was not hosting the event, reported that the NBA planned to start enforcing minimums on certain amenities for prospective All-Star markets, including at least 7,250 hotel rooms and three five-star hotels, at least 650,000 square feet of convention center and exhibition space, and at least 75 nonstop domestic flights and at least 20 international flights. The NBA denied that these were ironclad requirements. Miami is the second city to earn an All-Star Weekend since that report, joining Phoenix, as San Francisco (2025) and Los Angeles (2026) were already settled. All four cities are notably relatively warm in February.

So, why did it take so long for Miami in particular to get a second All-Star Weekend? The answer may be the Miami International Boat Show, which occupies much of the city's hotel and convention space capacity and usually comes during Presidents' Day weekend, which often conflicts with the NBA's All-Star schedule. However, the Boat Show will reportedly be moving to a different weekend in 2028 to accommodate the NBA, which will hold All-Star Weekend from Feb. 18-20.

The Heat did not put in a bid to host All-Star Weekend, according to the Miami Herald, and have typically avoided doing so in the past. Instead, the NBA reportedly approached the Heat about hosting, and now, Miami will get its first All-Star Game in almost four decades.