As many are aware, last weekend was All-Star weekend for the NBA, during which the best the league has to offer met for a weekend of friendly competition in several areas of the game. There was a Rising Stars Challenge (a pickup game in which the best rookie and sophomore players went at it), a team challenge made up of current and former players and WNBA stars, an individual skills competition (obstacle course), a three-point shoot-out and a dunk contest, along with the actual All-Star Game itself. Except for a few bright spots like Kyrie Irving’s emergence as a dominant force in the league, the weekend was a bit of a let down from recent years.
Speaking of the NBA’s future, did anyone see Damian Lillard win the skills competition? The man out-foxed Tony Parker, last year’s winner, to make the individual final and then thrashed Jrue Holiday, a much improved newcomer to the All-Star scene. This guy started out his career by tying an NBA record in his debut week, has hit a game winner already and now is making a case as one of the most skilled players in the NBA. I am very excited for this man’s future.
The dunk contest was not really as fun as previous years. Terence Ross won by performing an Eastbay (through the legs) while jumping over the son of the man who owns Twitter. This is impressive, but I generally like to reward the creative guy, so I liked Jeremy Evans better. The man dunked over a portrait of himself dunking over a portrait of himself (yes, that did come out right!) and then signed it while the crowd cheered. Not as creative as biting a stuffed animal off of the rim like Serge Ibaka did, or as impressive as Blake Griffin jumping over a car, but definitely amusing, to say the least. He also had a nice dunk in which he hung in the air for a second with his legs apart before jamming it through the rim. Oh, and he did this after jumping over someone sitting on a box. Not bad; shame he didn’t win.
The actual All-Star game was not really too eventful or surprising. The West won (of course), making them the winners of four of the last five. Kevin Durant led all scorers with 30 points, but L.A. Clippers point guard Chris Paul took MVP with 21 points and 15 assists.
The main event people are still talking about occurred when Kobe Bryant blocked LeBron James twice in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter. This took place a few days after Michael Jordan picked Bryant as better than James career-wise simply because he has more championships, stirring up wild debates about who the best really is.
My previous article mentioned that LeBron James is certainly better right now, in the prime of his career, than Kobe (age 34). Many took Bryant’s defensive efforts as a stunt to drive home Jordan’s point, a way of saying “I’m still your master.” Others, like Reggie Miller, took it as a fun, competitive gesture: The Lakers were predicted to play the Heat in the finals this year, which most likely will not happen, making the All-Star game the last time the league’s giants will play each other until next year.
For me, the fact that a veteran blocking the league’s star is the most talked about event in All-Star weekend this year tells me that the league and players need(s) to step up its/their game in the coming years, because these games used to get really exciting, with heated rivalries on display. These days, we just are not seeing it. Even the game itself was not spectacular this year. Last year had many more creative and impressive dunks and an exciting faceoff in the fourth quarter to determine who would win. This year, although the score was close, it was pretty obvious who was in control. Maybe next year will be a little bit more nail-biting.
