Let’s take a break from the Sixers and watch players who are excelling this year.
By and large, it has not been a fun year to follow professional basketball in the Philadelphia area. The Sixers bandwagon is a bumbling mess swerving all over the road with spare parts falling into the ditch at every turn. The ‘push for the 10-spot vs. tank for something like a 60 percent chance to keep their first-round pick’ debate is as heated as it is depressing. While being Super Bowl Champions was a worthy distraction for many of us, that time is unfortunately now in the past.
But for one weekend, we can enjoy NBA basketball, or at least something NBA basketball-adjacent, without thinking too much about the Sixers’ downfall. It’s NBA All-Star weekend! I would say for the majority of us, the Saturday night events are the most enjoyable part of the proceedings. Let’s take a look at what’s on tap for tonight.
1st event: Kia Skills Challenge
Team Cavs: Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley
Team Rookies: Zaccharie Risacher, Alex Sarr
Team Spurs: Chris Paul, Victor Wembanyama
Team Warriors: Draymond Green, Moses Moody
The Skills Challenge is typically the least exciting of these events, buy any chance to see Wemby do something on a basketball court is reason enough to tune in.
2nd Event: Starry 3-Point Contest
Participants:
Jalen Brunson
Cade Cunningham
Darius Garland
Tyler Herro
Buddy Hield
Cameron Johnson
Damian Lillard
Norman Powell
Dame Lillard is the two-time defending champ and the odds-on favorite this year. I’ll be rooting for Villanova legend Jalen Brunson, with the chance to do so again in something other than a hated Knicks-specific context.
3rd Event: AT&T Slam Dunk
Participants:
Matas Buzelis (Chicago Bulls)
Stephon Castle (San Antonio Spurs)
Andre Jackson Jr. (Milwaukee Bucks)
Mac McClung (G League Osceola Magic)
This field is fine enough, I suppose, with a couple of rookies and a second-year guy in Jackson joining two-time defending champ McClung. Are you rooting for the former Sixers superstar to win his third straight or are you hoping to see some fresh blood take home the hardware?