Title: NBA All Star thread
Description: What do ya think?
Description: What do ya think?
whitemilesdavis - February 16, 2006 04:55 PM (GMT)
Who'll win?
Will it be good?
Will anyone strike a fan?
Starting lineups:
West: Kobe, Nash, Yao, Duncan, McGrady
East: Wade, AI, Shaq, Jermaine Oneal, Lebron
Surprisingly strong lineup this year, in my opinion. I think the West will win, mostly due to Nash and Duncan playing team ball.
Will it be good?
Will anyone strike a fan?
Starting lineups:
West: Kobe, Nash, Yao, Duncan, McGrady
East: Wade, AI, Shaq, Jermaine Oneal, Lebron
Surprisingly strong lineup this year, in my opinion. I think the West will win, mostly due to Nash and Duncan playing team ball.
Mad Dog - February 16, 2006 05:04 PM (GMT)
Don't care at all. It's a fucking joke that the Pistons didn't get any starting slots on the team.
Though I would watch if they put the Pistons starting 5 against the West All-Stars.
Though I would watch if they put the Pistons starting 5 against the West All-Stars.
whitemilesdavis - February 16, 2006 05:05 PM (GMT)
While the Pistons are a strong team, no individual on that team should break the starting 5.
TheGreatWhiteChoate - February 16, 2006 05:06 PM (GMT)
No question in my mind that the West wins this one. Duncan may have to beat Kobe and McGrady to death if he wants to play team ball, though.
Scrooge McSuck - February 16, 2006 05:08 PM (GMT)
I usually enjoy the Saturday Night stuff (Slam Dunk, Shootout, Rookie Game), but everything's been turned to shit over the last few years that I hardly care these days.
Mad Dog - February 16, 2006 05:09 PM (GMT)
The dunk competition ceased being good once Spudd Webb retired.
TheGreatWhiteChoate - February 16, 2006 05:09 PM (GMT)
| QUOTE (Scrooge McSuck @ Feb 16 2006, 01:08 PM) |
| I usually enjoy the Saturday Night stuff (Slam Dunk, Shootout, Rookie Game), but everything's been turned to shit over the last few years that I hardly care these days. |
Honestly, I still like the Rookie Game. It's really the only chance I have to see some of these kids play, and every year I hope someone's going to have the fundamentals nailed down. I'm really looking forward to watching Paul play.
Scrooge McSuck - February 16, 2006 05:10 PM (GMT)
I disagree... in 1997, Michael Finley performed one of the funniest (shitty) dunks ever, doing a terrible cartwheel and missing the dunk on top of it.
Mad Dog - February 16, 2006 05:11 PM (GMT)
I guess I just miss the days when you looked forward to seeing what crazy thing Drexler or Webb would break out that year.
TheGreatWhiteChoate - February 16, 2006 05:11 PM (GMT)
| QUOTE (Scrooge McSuck @ Feb 16 2006, 01:10 PM) |
| I disagree... in 1997, Michael Finley performed one of the funniest (shitty) dunks ever, doing a terrible cartwheel and missing the dunk on top of it. |
If I remember correctly, I nearly pissed my pants when that happened. I also enjoyed laughing at the Birdman when he missed like 45 in a row.
Scrooge McSuck - February 16, 2006 05:14 PM (GMT)
I still have the dunk on tape, and it's easily my favorite moment from any of the Slam Dunks.
And what about Birdman missing 45 in a row?
And I'm still pissed no New York players won a thing when the All-Star Weekend came to MSG. Alan Houston/That Ugly Bitch sucked at 2-Ball and Charlie Ward choked in the Shootout.
And what about Birdman missing 45 in a row?
And I'm still pissed no New York players won a thing when the All-Star Weekend came to MSG. Alan Houston/That Ugly Bitch sucked at 2-Ball and Charlie Ward choked in the Shootout.
TheGreatWhiteChoate - February 16, 2006 05:15 PM (GMT)
Just the execution of the dunk contest has been lacking lately. They whiff pretty badly sometimes, and the Birdman was the best example of that.
Mad Dog - February 16, 2006 05:20 PM (GMT)
Maybe it has to do with the watered down talent level. Though that wouldn't explain why I fucking hate the homerun derby.
Scrooge McSuck - February 16, 2006 05:21 PM (GMT)
Homerun Derby? You mean the event where Single A ball players lob 40 MPH fastballs to the top power hitters in the majors?
whitemilesdavis - February 16, 2006 05:40 PM (GMT)
The dunk contest lacks starpower. That's the bootom line. The Dr. J's, Jordans, Dominiques, etc, just don't do it anymore. It kind of shows the midset, and lack of willingness to give to the fans. I'm sure if Kobe, Mcgrady, Lebron, and Garnett were in it, lots of people would be excited.
Scrooge McSuck - February 19, 2006 12:22 AM (GMT)
I caved, and am probably going to watch tonight, just for the fact I have shit knowledge of anything that went on this year other than Kobe showcasing everyone the lessons of being a ballhog and the Knicks sucking dick again.
S.T. Strickler - February 19, 2006 02:24 AM (GMT)
The dunk contest only features at least 4 guys every year, and most of them are unknowns. I'd rather have it be 8 guys, and be major superstars.
Scrooge McSuck - February 19, 2006 02:36 AM (GMT)
Back in the 80's, you had Michael Jordan and Dominique Wilkens participating every year. Now you get mainly guys that come off the bench for most games in the season.
Scrooge McSuck - February 19, 2006 01:35 PM (GMT)
| QUOTE |
| Knicks' Robinson Wins Slam Dunk Crown on Dunk-Off On 14th Try, 5-Foot-9 Guard Defies Gravity to Edge Iguodala by One Point By ANDREW BAGNATO, AP Sports HOUSTON (Feb. 18) - The NBA's All-Star Saturday turned basketball inside-out. A big guy won the 3-point shootout. A little guy won the slam dunk contest. After 7-foot Dirk Nowitzki of Dallas proved the best sniper from beyond the arc, the New York Knicks' 5-foot-9 rookie Nate Robinson became the NBA's new jam king. Robinson beat out 6-foot-6 Andre Iguodala of Philadelphia, 6-9 Hakim Warrick of Memphis and 6-9 defending champ Josh Smith of Atlanta, conjuring up memories of Spud Webb - and then dunking over the smallest slam champ the NBA as ever seen. Miami's Dwyane Wade won the skills competition. Robinson and Nowitzki are part of the changing NBA game, in which giants roam the perimeter while guards go hard to the hoop. "When people look at me, they really don't understand where the hops are coming from," said Robinson, who edged Iguodala in a dunk-off to earn a $35,000 first prize. Big men don't need hops to dunk. But it helps if they have a reliable jump shot. "I think when you look at the game now, a lot of big guys can step out and make that 16-, 17-, 18-footer," Nowitzki said. Nowitzki drew a warm ovation from the Toyota Center crowd. But Robinson, a first-round draft pick out of Washington, electrified the building by taking a bounce pass from Webb, the 1986 champion, and leaping over the 5-foot-7 former Atlanta Hawks guard to jam. The stunt earned a perfect 50-point score from the five-judge panel to force a dunk-off against Iguodala, who had received two perfect scores. Robinson gave an assist for the memorable dunk to Knicks teammate Jamal Crawford. "We were on the plane and he was like, 'Man, I have the perfect idea,' " Robinson said. "I was like, 'What?' He said, 'You should jump over Spud Webb. It's been 20 years (since Webb won the title). "We had to get in touch with him, so we did and he was like, 'Yeah, sure,' " Robinson said. Webb, the only other player shorter than 6 feet to win the popular contest, said he enjoyed sharing the spotlight with Robinson. "He doesn't know what he did tonight," Webb said. "He made history. One day he can tell his kids about this." In the dunk-off, a tiring Robinson needed 14 attempts to dunk. He finally caught his own pass off the backboard and jammed, earning 47 points to edge Iguodala by one. Iguodala shook his head when the final score was posted but wasn't bitter. "(Robinson) deserved to win," Iguodala said. "This is for the crowd. If that's what they wanted, then that's what they got. I'm not too worried about it." Webb had a reply to those who thought Iguodala should have won. "Let me answer that for you: Big guys shouldn't judge the dunk contest," Webb said. Each player dunked twice in the first round, with judges awarding composite scores between 30 and 50 points. The top two scores advanced to the finals. In the 20th three-point shootout, Nowitzki outshot Seattle's Ray Allen and Washington's Gilbert Arenas in the final round to win the $35,000 first prize. Nowitzki scored 18 points, topping Arenas' 16 and Allen's 15. Players circle the three-point arc, pulling balls off racks and hitting as many shots as they can in 60 seconds. "You know, that's kind of my game," said Nowitzki, who is shooting 41.7 percent from beyond the arc this season. "I'm a shooter first and then everything else comes second." Last year's champion, Quentin Richardson of the New York Knicks, was eliminated in the first round. Wade edged Cleveland's LeBron James in the final round of the fourth skills challenge. In the skills challenge, four players dribble, pass and shoot their way through a timed obstacle course. The players with the fastest times in the first round meet in the final round. In the final round, Wade won the $35,000 first prize by navigating the course in 26.1 seconds, punctuating his final dunk by jabbing a finger toward the grandstand. His time was .3 seconds off the record set last year by Phoenix guard Steve Nash. That easily beat James' time of 33.7 seconds. Chris Paul, the rookie guard with New Orleans, finished third in 42.6 seconds. Nash finished last in 52.8 seconds after missing all five three-point shots. In the fifth shooting stars competition, San Antonio's Tony Parker, Steve Kerr and Kendra Wecker defeated teams representing Los Angeles, Houston and Phoenix. In the event, a present NBA player, WNBA player and a "legend" from the same city shoot from six spots of increasing difficulty. San Antonio hit all six shots in 25.1 seconds, with Parker draining a shot from just inside the half-court stripe to clinch the $45,000 first prize. 02/19/06 00:02 EST |
whitemilesdavis - February 20, 2006 01:59 PM (GMT)
I only watched the game. It sucked. The end.
Scrooge McSuck - February 20, 2006 02:48 PM (GMT)
The NBA All-Star game sucked? In other news, the Olympics are fixed.
TheGreatWhiteChoate - February 20, 2006 09:54 PM (GMT)
It was bizarre to see Kobe passing, wasn't it?