NBA All-Star Weekend 2013

By: Nathan

The NBA All-Star Weekend is an event hosted by the NBA, or National Basketball Association, featuring the star players from the Eastern and Western Conference. The first All-Star Game was in Boston, Massachusetts, 1951. This year, the 62nd All-Star Weekend will be hosted by Houston, Texas on February 15-17. This is the third time Houston hosted the All-Star Weekend (1989, 2006, and 2013). The All-Star Weekend consists of multiple events spread throughout the weekend.

On Friday, there will be seven main events. The first event is the BBVA Rising Stars Challenge Practice. This event is where the rookies and sophomores in the NBA league practice for their game later in the day. At noon (eastern time), there will be the Basketball Hall of Fame Announcement, where players are acknowledged for their outstanding performance. Next will be the All-Star Celebrity Game. The All-Star Celebrity game is an event where celebrities throughout the nation get together and play basketball. The lineups are not yet announced. Finally, the last event on Friday is the BBVA Rising Stars Challenge. Rookies and sophomores in the NBA league are drafted on to teams by Shaquille O'Neal and Charles Barkley, both of which are former NBA players. The eligible players that are in the Rising Stars Challenge are: Klay Thompson and Harrison Barnes of the Golden State Warriors; Bradley Beal of the Washington Wizzards; Anthony Davis of the New Orleans Hornets; Andre Drummond and Brandon Knight of the Detroit Pistons; Kenneth Faried of the Denver Nuggets; Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Kemba Walker of the Charlotte Bobcats; Kyrie Irving, Tristan Thompson, Dion Waiters, and Tyler Zeller of the Cleveland Cavaliers; Kawhi Leonard of the San Antonio Spurs, Damian Lillard of the Portland Trailblazers; Chandler Parsons of the Houston Rockets; Alexey Shved of the Minnesota Timberwolves; and Nickola Vucevic of the Orlando Magic.

On Saturday, there will be four main events.  First will be the D-League All-Star Game. The D-League is for players returning from an injury or who need to improve. Then at 8:30, there will be the 2013 Sears Shooting Stars, where one current NBA player, one current WNBA player, and one NBA legend on each team shoot six numbered shooting locations of increasing difficulty. The teams are not yet announced. Then next event is the 2013 Taco Bell Skills Challenge. This event features 3 players from each conference completing obstacles with passing and shooting stations. This years competitors are: Jrue Holiday of the Philadelphia 76ers; Brandon Knight of the Detroit Pistons; and Jeff Teague of the Atlanta Hawks for the Eastern Conference and Tony Parker of the San Antonio; Damian Lillard of the Portland Trailblazers; and Jeremy Lin of the Houston Rockets for the Western Conference. The next event is the 2013 Foot Locker Three-Point Contest. Five shooting stations will be set up throughout the three-point line and players shoot four balls worth one point each and a "money ball" worth two points each. This years competitors are Paul George of the Indiana Pacers; Kyrie Irving of the Cleveland Cavaliers; and Steve Novak of the New York Knicks representing the Eastern Conference and Ryan Anderson of the New Orleans Hornets; Matt Bonner of the San Antonio Spurs; and Stephan Curry of the Golden State Warriors representing the Western Conference. The last event on Saturday is the 2013 Sprite Slam Dunk Contest. Fans vote through text to elect the winner of the final round. This years competitors for the Eastern Conference are Gearald Green of the Indiana Pacers; Terrence Ross of the Toronto Raptors; James White of the New York Knicks and for the Western Conference, Eric Bledsoe of the Los Angeles Clippers; Jeremy Evans of the Utah Jazz; and Kenneth Faried of the Denver Nuggets.

Finally on Sunday is the long anticipated 2013 All-Star Game. Fans vote for the five players of the starting lineup for each conference and the coaches elect, or reserve, another seven players of their choice. The players that are chosen are considered the leagues "brightest stars".  For the Eastern Conference, the original starters were: Carmelo Anthony of the New York Knicks; LeBron James and Dwyane Wade of the Miami Heat; and Kevin Garnet and Rajon Rondo of the Boston Celtics. Sadly, Rajon Rondo was cut from the team due to a torn ACL. His replacement is likely to be someone on the roster. The reserve players on the Eastern Conference are: Chris Bosh of the Miami Heat; Tyson Chandler of the New York Knicks; Luol Deng and Joakim Noah of the Chicago Bulls; Paul George of the Indiana Pacers; Jrue Holiday of the Philadelphia 76ers; Kyrie Irving of the Cleveland Cavaliers; and Brook Lopez of the Brooklyn Nets. For the Western Conference, The starting lineup is: Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder; Dwight Howard and Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers; and Blake Griffin and Chris Paul of the Los Angeles Clippers. The reserve players are: LaMarcus Aldridge of the Portland Trailblazers; Tim Duncan and Tony Parker of the San Antonio Spurs; James Harden of the Houston Rockets; David Lee of the Golden State Warriors; Zach Randolph of the Memphis Grizzlies; and Russel Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder.