I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again… All-Star Weekend simply doesn’t do much for me. I don’t know if it’s that it really isn’t as good as it used to be, or if it just doesn’t seem to be because I’ve grown older and grumpier. Either way, it’s not my cup of tea anymore. I used to get really excited about the dunk contest back in the J-Rich, Desmond Mason era… but not anymore. I recall watching a few All-Star Games in the Allen Iverson era that really captivated me, but I don’t even pay my full attention these days. Like I said, though, maybe those weekends weren’t actually better… maybe it’s just that I was still young enough to idolize the players, and everything had that youthful magic to it that nothing has when a dude grows older. I don’t know, and I guess it doesn’t even matter. For whatever reason I’d prefer to watch a preseason game, and that’s just how it is.
All of that being said, All-Star Weekend does present a stage like none other in basketball. The whole thing is pretty loosey-goosey, so we get to see a few things that would never take place in a regular NBA setting (J-Rich bouncing the ball off Carlos Boozer’s face, or the J-Will elbow pass, for example). Although many of these moments, to me, are harder to appreciate due to the same loosey-gooseyness that makes it possible, some of ‘em are so spectacular that it doesn’t even matter. I’m certainly not such a fuddy-duddy that I find the whole thing entirely uninteresting, and here are a few things that went down that did interest me this All-Star Weekend…
John Wall can dunk better than you thought he could: Although JR Smith did the first behind-the-back dunk that I’d ever seen way back in ’05, John Wall’s version in the Rising Stars Challenge still took me by surprise and impressed the hell out of me. A behind-the-back dunk… it’s not like a windmill, a 360, or even a between-the-legs; it’s a dunk that you rarely see, and outside of the crazy sh!t that those Flight Brothers are doing, I imagine it’s one of the most difficult to pull off. John Wall threw it down with ease, along with a multitude of other spectacular slams. I was disappointed to see guys dog it so hard in that Rising Stars Challenge even after the institution of a new format, but John Wall was definitely a standout performer.
The second round of the dunk contest: Chase Budinger bricked a basic windmill and Paul George did somethin’ that certainly wasn’t for everybody, but Derrick Williams pulled off a maneuver that Blake Griffin was unable to complete last year and Jeremy Evans came with a two-ball lob dunk that we’ve certainly never seen before.
Kobe passed MJ for #1 on the All-Star scoring list: This is certainly a testament to Kobe’s prolonged greatness. I mean, he’s not even at the point in his career where he’s getting voted into the game based solely on his popularity, and he’s already got the record. That’s pretty impressive to me, and by the time he hangs up his Nikes I’m sure he will have moved quite a few points ahead of Jordan. I had Kobe as my MVP bet last night, but he came up a few points shy of Kevin Durant, the first-time winner. I think they should’ve given it to Kobe anyway simply because he had to endure a broken nose before reaching his milestone. Who the hell breaks their nose in the ASG and keeps playing? There are certainly things about Kobe that I don’t like, but there are things I love about the dude too. If everyone was like Kobe you could rest assured that the first 42 minutes of these exhibitions would NOT be boring.
Gerald Green wins MVP of the D-Leage All-Star Game in style: When Gerald Green was selected 18th overall by the Boston Celtics in ’05 I certainly didn’t see a lot of D-League basketball in his future. His raw abilities at age 18 seemed to include the exact tools necessary to become an excellent swingman in the NBA, but I guess his career path simply goes to show that it often takes more than ability alone to make it in the league. Anyway, Gerald is now a 26-year-old Los Angeles D-Fender, and although he’s essentially the same player he was at 18, that means he’s still got those ups. He used them to score 28 of the most spectacular points you’ll ever see in any basketball game during this weekend’s D-League festivities. Video courtesy of BallIsLife.com…
The last couple minutes of the actual game: LeBron James nailed five three-pointers as he exploded for 21 of his 36 points during a near-comeback that saw the East fall just one bucket shy after trailing by 21 in the second half. Had LeBron and the East been able to pull it off it would've been pretty epic, but the game ended on a Deron Williams airball/LeBron James turnover. Still, watching it unfold over the course of those last few minutes was exciting. I wish they played the entire game so competitively.
Also check out the D-League dunk contest, Chris Paul taking it to the streets, and Ricky Rubio... also taking it to the streets!
