This weekend will be a showcase of the total NBA experience. The NBA All-Star festivities will take place in Orlando, Florida with the very best the game of basketball has to offer. Or will it? The All-Star Saturday Night activities over the past twenty some odd years have brought some of the best memories for me. The slam dunk contest alone has pitted some of the games all-time greats. Who doesn't remember Michael Jordan flying through the air from the free throw line defeating Domonique Wilkens with a big 50 pointer. Those battles are legendary and Jordan came away a winner every time. I can still remember Spud Webb dropping jams and 360 slam dunks and wondering how someone 5'7'' could do such a thing. It was exciting and we flocked to the TV to catch the next great event. The slam dunk contest wasn't the only exhibition that brought memories that have lasted for me. My favorite memory happened in the three point contest and Larry Legend was the man. My friends and I were watching as Larry Bird was down in points and needed to run the last rack to win the championship. Like only a true HOFer could, he proceeded to drain everyone of those shots. He was unconscious, almost in a trance, and as he released the very last ball he calmly strutted away. He walked knowing the last ball was destined for the bottom of the net with his hand high and his finger pointing number one as the ball was still in the air. He knew without even having to see it go through the net that his release was pure and the championship was his. He was so money and what a way to showcase it. The best shooter in the game showed up and proved it. These are just a few examples of why this weekend has been so great for the NBA basketball fan. I just wish it was still like this. The NBA does a great job giving back to the fans and trying to make this weekend relevant. They have added skills competitions, celebrity games, and this year have even added LINSANITY to the mix. (For those who don't know by know Mr. Jeremy Lin by way of Harvard and New York Knicks who has taken the NBA by storm) They are desperately trying to recapture the magic of years past and what has for a long time been a wonderful All-Star festivities and game. The problem now is that the best players in the game like Lebron, Kobe, Durant, Rose, etc. don't want to participate in the whole experience. The slam dunk contest has been tweaked and changed with it now being just a shell of its former self. I can't even tell you how disappointing it is to tell my children that Chase Buddinger is in the slam dunk contest and that he wouldn't even be able to hold Jordan's towel back in the old days. To not have the best athletes throwing down dunks and letting little known players perform is embarrassing for the league that was built on high energy, high athleticism, and great action. I think the NBA does a great job with fan friendly experiences and they are fabulous and should continue but if the best of the best aren't going to participate then maybe scrap the dunk contest all together. The three point contest can still be awesome but the stars of stars need to take a page out of Mr. Bird's book and step up to the three point line and compete. The competitiveness of all NBA athletes is at a high level, but we the fans want to see them breakthrough to the highest level. They deserve to see the best compete. It won't keep me from watching this weekend but I am hoping for yet another memory I can to add to my list of favorites.
I just hope the memory is of an ALL STAR and not an ALMOST STAR!
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