How fun was that? All-Star Weekend is officially over after numerous exciting events, including the Celebrity All-Star Game, Three-Point Shootout, Slam Dunk Contest and All-Star Game. From unbelievable shots to jaw-dropping dunks, we had the opportunity to witness greatness these last few days.
Below are the ten best highlights from the weekend:
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10. Arne Duncan has been best known for serving as the Secretary of Education of the United States of America. Yet, after Friday night that may have changed. The 49-year-old scored a Celebrity All-Star record-high 20 points, to go along with 11 rebounds and six assists, to lead his East team past the West, 60-56. Duncan was named the game’s Most Valuable Player.
While Duncan’s success on the hardwood might have been a surprise to some fans, the Harvard alumnus does have basketball history as co-captain for the Crimson before heading to play professionally overseas.
9. Although Stephen Curry came up short in the Three-Point Shootout, the lethal Golden State Warriors shooter still managed to get in some highlights. While practicing before participating in any of the events, Curry drained three consecutive half-court shots to the pleasure of the crowd in attendance. Even his opponents were in shock.
Curry struggled in the All-Star Game, shooting just 4-of-14 from the field and 2-of-11 from three-point range. He finished with 12 points and 11 assists as the Western Conference fell to the Eastern Conference, 163-155.
8. Dark horse Marco Belinelli emerged as one of the surprises of the weekend. Despite airballing three shots, the NBA journeyman beat out Bradley Beal and the rest of the competition to take home the Three-Point Shootout.
As a member of the San Antonio Spurs, the 27-year-old is averaging 11.3 points per game, including shooting 44.8 percent from beyond the arc. Below is his season shot chart from distance:
7. While LeBron James remains adamant about not participating in the Slam Dunk Contest, fans certainly got their fair share of highlights from Sunday night’s All-Star Game. Early in the contest, James forced a turnover before dribbling the ball up the floor and dishing it off Carmelo Anthony, who tapped right back to his teammate for an alley-oop windmill dunk.
The Miami Heat star finished with 22 points on 11-of-22 shooting, seven rebounds, seven assists and three steals in just over 33 minutes.
6. Blake Griffin was at it again. Treating the All-Star Game as his own personal playground, the Los Angeles Clippers high-flying big man threw down dunks galore on Sunday night. He finished tied for a game-high with 38 points on 19-of-23 shooting, six rebounds and two steals.
5. Ben McLemore was bested by John Wall and the rest of the Eastern Conference in the Slam Dunk Contest, but the Sacramento Kings rookie still delivered one of the most memorable dunks of the weekend. Starting from above the three-point line, the 21-year-old took four dribbles toward the basket before taking flight and leaping over a sitting Shaquille O’Neal, jamming down the one-handed dunk.
4. Despite facing turmoil this season with the New York Knicks, Carmelo Anthony is individually playing some of the best basketball of his career–and it didn’t stop this weekend. He dropped 30 points in the All-Star Game, shooting 8-of-13 (61.5 percent) from three-point range. The eight made treys were the most ever in the All-Star Game, topping Mark Price‘s six threes in the 1993 contest.
Through 49 games this season, ‘Melo is averaging 27.3 points and 8.6 rebounds. He is shooting 41.6 percent from beyond the arc, knocking down more than two per game.
3. Kyrie Irving proved once again why he was taken No. 1 overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2011. Despite struggling at times throughout the season with the Cavs, Irving was rightly voted as an All-Star starter. The 21-year-old dazzled in Sunday night’s game, solidifying himself as one of the league’s top ballhandlers and point guards.
Irving finished with 31 points on 14-of-17 shooting and 14 assists, leading the East to victory for the first time since 2010. He also came away with the All-Star Game Most Valuable Player award:
2. It’s always nice to see players from different generations come together. What better time to do this than during the All-Star Game for Bill Russell‘s birthday? The Boston Celtics living legend turned 80 years old on February 12, but the festivities continued into the weekend.
The fans at the Smoothie King Center on Sunday night sang happy birthday to Russell, after which All-Stars from both teams came over to honor Russell and pay their respects. It was a memorable moment for everyone involved, and certainly a sight to see:
1. While there are critics of the new rules for the Slam Dunk Contest, John Wall’s huge throwdown is hard to dispute. The first-time participant was voted Dunker of the Night after the weekend’s loudest slam, jumping over the Washington Wizards mascot before grabbing the ball mid-air, double-pumping and jamming home the reverse dunk.
What were your favorite moments?
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