INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis became a basketball paradise for NBA All-Star Weekend and the Indiana Pacers say a massive crowd experienced the Hoosier hysteria.
Pacers Sports and Entertainment claims more than 190,000 fans attended NBA All-Star Weekend festivities, which they say is the highest attendance for the event in fourteen years.
"The spending from people who were coming downtown was upwards of $300 million," said Danny Lopez of Pacers Sports and Entertainment. "We deliver and over-deliver on these events as well as any city probably in the world."
The crowds are gone, but several reminders of the festivities are now permanent pieces of Indianapolis.
That includes the Bicentennial Unity Plaza, an outdoor basketball court and event space next to Gainbridge Fieldhouse. It opened this fall and hosted the All-Star Weekend Tip-Off concert.
"I catch the Red Line to come down here and shoot around a little bit for at least a half an hour," said Ke'Shawn Johnson, an Indianapolis resident who uses the plaza court on a daily basis. "It's amazing and crazy to hear that so many people came to Indianapolis."
Indianapolis had waited since 1985 for another chance at hosting the NBA All-Star Game. The next two NBA All-Star Games are in cities that could be considered the opposite of Indianapolis: San Francisco in 2025 and Los Angeles in 2026.
Lopez hopes the NBA gives all of its cities a chance to shine for the all-star crowds.
"I think it's important that markets like ours and cities like Indianapolis get to show off to the whole world," Lopez said. "However, this is not new to us. There's only one city in America that could pull off hosting the entirety of the 2021 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament."
