In about 5 minutes, the NBA's midseason classic will be getting underway. The 2010 All-Star Game has been billed a spectacle unlike any before. Mark Cuban's idiotic hyperbole ("It will make the Super Bowl look like a bar mitzvah") aside, this will be a huge event for the NBA; its 90,000+ attendees make up the largest crowd ever to watch a basketball game. Despite some key injuries, it's also the best collection of talent on a court together this year...and after the joke of a dunk contest we all labored through last night, us NBA fans are hungry for some highlights. After some Usher-led intros, tipoff's getting set, so let's get involved:- West wins the tip. Quick Nash to Nowitzki for an 18-foot jumper. Early MVP favorite? After a Lebron miss, another Dirk jumper...not convinced yet?
- A whole lot of jumpers so far. A couple airballs. Melo just made the first move to the hoop but couldnt hit the rim either...Lebron finally responds with a trey to put the East on the board.
- Amare puts back a yet another bricked jumper for the game's first dunk. Not to be outdone, Dwyane comes back off the backboard and onto Steve Nash.
- The game's starting to open up a bit now, the West is driving, dunking...hahaha aaaand Dwight hits a 3. Career first? Then he bricks one off the dribble next time up court? Stan must have a good sense of humor. He gets back to business quickly, pinning Melo 10 seconds later, then finishing with an and-1 tomahawk at the other end.
- Apparently the behemoth this game's taking place in will also host the Super Bowl and Final Four in the next 3 years. Jerry Jones is doin' his damn best to get his $1.5 billion worth.
- 5 left in the first and we're knotted at 20. The refs are calling a clean game so far, couple surprising whistles. The East is still bricking a lot of jumpers, the latest offender: 3-Point champ Paul Pierce.
- Dallas heroes collide as Chris Bosh cleans up an inevitable East brick and puts a disheartening crowning on the Dirkster. Bad news for Diggler all around as Melo's doing his best to stymie the MVP early; he's already halfway back downcourt by the time his 11th, 12th and 13th points fall through the net.
- We hear from Craig Sager; haven't seen his suit yet.
- The East's jumper woes are finally cured by...Rajon Rondo? Somehow they're up.
- Gasol gets mugged by Bosh and Howard and the refs give him a goaltending call? The elephants (..can't really call them zebras..) are really earning those paychecks tonight. 37-34 East after one.
- As the 2nd quarter starts....shit Deron can get UP!..sorry, the broadcast highlights the elevated court the game's being played on, a recent trend in new arenas. I dont get this. Has 'severe injury' written all over it if a player chases a ball out of bounds...not that we'll see that tonight tho...
- The boys are starting to put on a show now; Wade's dunking on everyone, Deron's pushing everything, tossing and catching alley-oops, really making the most of it now that he's finally here.
- TNT's about to air a segment called "What It Takes to Be an All-Star". In the West? Don't get injured. in the East? A playoff team.
- D-Fish in the house. The NBAPA pres is on hand with more nervous kids than a Neverland Ranch party for a special 'NBA Cares' presentation. Couldn't they do the CSR bit at halftime?
- Back to the game; Derek Rose gets loose in transition...Deron to KD for a huge cram...DWade puts down his 27th dunk of the night, a nice slashign tomahawk. Been a nice game so far....not enough to make upfor last night but its a start.
- Finally we get a Craig sighting sideline with Kevin Durant. His attire's surprisingly subdued this evening; a red blazer dapperly adorned by what appears to be a black suede suit. He's got these stupid shiny things on his tie though...he just couldn't resist.
- We also have our first Chris Kaman sighting. Enjoy it folks, won't last long.
- The East is starting to hit a few jumpers now, has a few nice transition buckets, and a 7-point lead at the half. Melo's got 17, but the East has 4 guys in double figures. Between the lax D and these guys being the best players on the planet, you have to think the home team's gonna start finding the net in the second half.
- Halftime performers: Alicia Keys and Shakira...Well done, Mr Stern.
- Shakira ascends to the stage in a cage, has apparently hired Britney Spears' old wardrobe manager, and the camera's giving ample attention to her..um..ass(ets). I can't stand the song she's singing, but still enjoying this as much as the game.
- Now for some Songs in A Minor. This lady's got one of the smoothest voices out there. Unfortunately, Alicia went a more conserative route with her attire...still though...damn.
- USA Basketball introduces their squad for the upcoming World Championships, offering up what has to be a somewhat sarcastic "we wish the best of luck to all teams competing in Turkey" while lining up the best players in tonight's game and flanking them with some of the nicest young guns in the L.
- Alright, 40 minutes later, it's back to the game. Opens with...another ugly brick from the East.
- Dwight decides to man the point and goes coast to coast for a dotted-line slam. Shaq can say what he wants about the guy but he's a fucking monster and he knows how to put on a show. That being said, nobody should try to punk Superman's nickname, he sparked that beef.
- Wade to D12 for a nice one hand slam on the break. His head's well above the rim on the replay...with the East up 14, Howard's suddenly making an MVP push.
- Lebron airballs a trey...and just when I was about to write something slanderous, he catches a feed from Wade, clutches a reverse slam and sits on Tim Duncan's head...and serves a nice encore on the next play.
- Out of a timeout, Bron returns the favor a tosses Wade a lob on the break. James is even hitting jumpers now. My Dirk prediction's looking worse every minute.
- This is getting ridiculous. As Bron skies for a soaring 2-hander on the break, we're reminded that Wade's got a double-double with 20 and 10 dimes. The West is looking gassed, like they really coulda used those injured bodies.
- Durant ices one from the parking lot as the buzzer sounds. It's 118-109 for the East going into the fourth. Melo's got 25 to lead all scorers.
- 108,000 and change in attendance. Not shabby.
- West comes out on a tear and cuts it to two in just over a minute. Guess we're gonna have a game on our hands here.
- Celeb Watch: Jigga, P Diddy, TO, Chris Tuckered; lookin like he's 60, Gabrielle Union (anyone got her on Facebook?), The Governator, and of course Spike Lee.
- Wade saves/lobs behind his back to Lebron on the break...who saves it between his legs to Rondo...who dishes behind the back to Wade.........who loses it as he goes up and gets fouled. Rats.
- Next time up the floor, Zach Randolph lays the hardest foul in All-Star history on Wade as he flies baseline.
- The odd whistles continue, a backcourt violation leads to a goaltend to knot the score at 124.
- Rondo pilfers the rock, straddles the sideline, and hits Wade for a nice oop (I'm pretty sure all Wade's field goals tonight are dunks); East up 4.
- For some reason, they're still showing those lame dunk contest ads with those spoken-word poets begging for a night that "goes down in history" and "gives us something to read about"...were they watching? Fuck off already.
- Wade with another steal, another dunk, another nail in the MVP coffin?. The East is looking like they're in control, up nine with 3:30 to go.
- A pair of free throws from Dirk cut it to 5 a minute later. The East is back to bricking jumpers...stay tuned....oops another steal leads to a Lebron breakaway dunk...and Chauncey comes back with an icy 3. Mr Big Shot indeed.
- Another Nowitzki trip to the charity stripe, and it's a two point game with a buck thirty left. Too early to ask for overtime?
- Chaaauuuunceyyyyyy. Billups ties it with a stepback right in Wade's mug.
- The game is tied, 30 seconds left, 100, 000 people on their feet, Deron Williams....dribbles into traffic and turns it over...and then fouls Wade with 11.2 left under the false pretense that his team was down two. Dwyane hits both, setting up what's either going to be a very thrilling or very stupid conclusion.
- They draw up a screen to free Dirk for a triple. Dwight bites on a pump fake and sends Nowitzki to the line, where he inevitably hits both. Tie game with 7.7 left...
- So who's getting the shot? My money's on a Lebron iso...but no a screen for Bosh off his own inbound. He gets tripped and wets both at the line...enough with the free throws already.
- 5 seconds left...does Dirk get another shot at the win? Instead Melo bails on a trey, the East wins a tight one 141-139. Wade's gotta be the MVP. Between the high-flying antics of Howard, Wade and James, a halftime show that looked (..and mostly sounded) better than The Who, and a relatively thrilling game down the stretch, the largest crowd ever to watch a basketball game got their money's worth. Even at like $500 a pop for nosebleeds.
- Confirming the obvious, Dwyane Wade takes down the MVP. All in all, a pretty entertaining evening, but I'm all outta popcorn. I'll get back later this week to break down the trade deadline madness, til then, peace.
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