ALL STAR SATURDAY
The Three-Point Competition is constantly over shadowed by the
Slam Dunk Contest on All-Star Saturday especially this year with the dunk event
containing numerous high profile names.
This year’s Three-Point Shootout contains 8 prolific shooters who all
rank in the top 70 among three point percentage and in the top 37 for three
pointers made. If we go by
percentages Marco Belinelli would be the favorite however if we based our
predictions on three pointers made, Steph Curry would win while Belinelli would
finish in last. Whoever catches
fire will win as is the case every year but I think the best chance lies with
either Beal or Belinelli. Both are
catch and shoot/spot shooting specialists and should excel at the stationary
racks. In the end it will be Beal
who comes out on top because he possesses the purest jump shot in the
league. Overlooking Curry might be
insane especially because he has been called by some the greatest shooter of
all time but he excels shooting off the dribble and over defenders not wide
open while picking balls off a rack.
3 Point Contestants and their 3PT
Statistics
-Stephen Curry – 171 Made 3PT – 41.5%
-Kyrie Irving – 90 Made 3PT – 36.9%
-Arron Afflalo – 93 Made 3PT – 42.5%
-Bradley Beal – 89 Made 3PT – 43.0%
-Marco Belinelli – 81 Made 3PT – 44.8%
-Kevin Love – 114 Made 3PT – 37.0%
-Joe Johnson – 94 Made 3PT – 39.0%
-Damien Lillard – 149 Made 3PT – 40.4%
Almost all of the contestants in
this year’s Slam Dunk Contest are intriguing with Ben McLemore’s inclusion
being the only head scratcher. We
all know what defending champion Terrence Ross can do as well as past
participant Paul George. I don’t
know what to expect from John Wall or Damien Lillard although both are superior
athletes who can defy gravity and fly. Harrison Barnes has a good dunk reputation and is tied for
the tallest participant with George.
The fans love to see a small player win but they also like to see a
superstar win so in that department George and Lillard both have a good chance. Ross would not be a bad bet to repeat
as champion but I think the favorite does have to be Paul George. Ross will not be able to live up to
last year’s performance and Lillard will be too burnt out from competing in 48
other events this weekend. We saw what George can do in game a couple weeks ago
and he will demonstrate some more of that creativity and athleticism en route
to winning the first ever “Dunker of the Night”.
Dunk Contest Contestants and
their Height
-Harrison Barnes – 6’8 -
-Damien Lillard – 6’3 -
-Terrence Ross – 6’6 -
-John Wall – 6’4 -
-Paul George – 6’8 -
McLemore could be a prop in the contest… but let’s be fair here we
go!
NBA All-Star
Game 2014
By: Sal Pellone
When: February 16th 8pm
Where: Smoothie King Center in New
Orleans, Louisiana
Host: New Orleans Pelicans
Imagine a Skills Challenge,
a Three-Point Contest, and a Dunk Contest all mixed into one game. You are
saying to yourself, “Wow that would be pretty sick, the NBA should do this.”
Little do we know, this jumble of all three events into one is known as the NBA
All-Star Game. This year’s game will be the 63rd edition and will be
played in The Big Easy. New Orleans
previously held the event in 2008 (I always knew David Stern and Adam Silver
were huge Mardi Gras fans). This year we anticipate more exotic colored
sneakers, sleeved jerseys, and less and less defense.
Jerseys
I do not like the NBA’s transition into
sleeved jerseys one bit. They look like those cheap fake jerseys you would get
as a kid at Modell’s. I do admire the creativity of the logo design though. The
logo is the Fleur-de-lis symbol that is presented on the jerseys of most New
Orleans sports teams and defines the city’s rich background.
I LOVE the warm-up jerseys for the
all-star game. I immediately got goose bumps after seeing these. These jerseys
represent the accolades of each player and they get to wear it with pride.
Snubs
As you should know, the fans vote for the
NBA starters that will participate in the All-Star Game. The coaches get the
privilege to select their bench players. Many players have gotten belligerently
snubbed from the big game. So I picked my NBA Snub teams for the Eastern and
Western Conference.
EAST
All-Star Snubs
G: Kyle Lowry (Toronto Raptors) 16.7 PPG, 7.6
APG, 4.5 RPG
G: Lance Stephenson (Indiana Pacers) 14.1
PPG, 5.1 APG, 7.3 RPG
F: Arron Afflalo (Orlando Magic) 19.4 PPG,
3.7 APG, 4.1 RPG
F: Evan Turner (Philadelphia 76ers) 17.5 PPG,
3.6 APG, 5.9 RPG
F: Al Jefferson (Charlotte Bobcats) 20.1 PPG,
10.5 RPG
WEST
All-Star Snubs
G: Mike Conley (Memphis Grizzlies) 18 PPG,
6.3 APG
G: Goran Dragic (Phoenix Suns) 20.3 PPG, 6.2
APG, 3.5 RPG
F: David Lee (Golden State Warriors) 18.8
PPG, 9.8 RPG
F: Anthony Davis (New Orleans Pelicans) 20.5
PPG, 10.1 RPG, 3.1 BLKPG
*Note
Davis was originally snubbed but is now on the roster
F: DeMarcus Cousins (Sacramento Kings) 22.5
PPG, 11.7 RPG
Game
Prediction
Now, lets get to the big game we are all
waiting for. The Western Conference has been more superior to the Eastern
Conference this year and the past 3 all-star games. The West definitely has the
more star-studded roster with stars galore. Although the East has Indiana
Pacers coach Frank Vogel who is a great defensive coach, expect absolutely no
defense from both teams.
West
OVER East
MVP
Every player is competing for that MVP
award secretly. It is so hard to predict when LeBron James, Kevin Durant,
Carmelo Anthony, Stephen Curry and others stars are competing. I am going with
the unexpected pick for MVP, he is going to have alley-oops to Anthony Davis,
Blake Griffin, Dwight Howard, and Kevin Durant. The ex New Orleans Hornets
player wins it.
Chris
Paul
