Kobe Bryant, Toronto add spice to NBA All-Star Game
The NBA All-Star Game says goodbye to Kobe Bryant, who is playing his 20th and final season.
Bryant, who will retire after this season, has been making his farewell tour and is appearing in his 18th All-Star Game.
“If his legs are good, he’s feeling good and his stroke is going, knowing Kobe, he will go for the MVP. … It’s all about certain storylines, and the first part of the storyline is the Kobe tour,” said former NBA star Shaquille O’Neal, an analyst with TNT. “If he can get MVP that would be the second part of the storyline. The last part of the storyline is we would like to get a championship or make the playoffs, but that’s definitely not going to happen.”
This is a great showcase of Kobe’s career. It’s a celebration of his career, what he has done in the NBA.”
TNT analyst Kenny Smith said of Kobe Bryant’s last All-Star game
Bryant is a four-time All-Star Game MVP and the top scorer (280 points) in the game’s history.
“I love him, I hate him and I respect him,” former NBA sharpshooter Reggie Miller said of Bryant. “I love him because, when you come in at 18 and you play 20 years at the shooting guard position … that shows me his love for the game. I hate him because, in 2000, when we battled for a championship, he was just too good. That Laker team denied me from the ultimate goal of winning a championship. I respect him for what he is doing now.
“Father Time catches up to all of us. To be able to pass the torch to D’Angelo Russell and Julius Randle, it is tough for superstars to give an inch. And Kobe has had to take a step back and see what it is important to him. I respect him for giving back to these young guys and to see what will make them successful in this league.”
Bryant led all players with nearly 1.9 million votes. The Lakers, however, have only won 11 games this season.
“This is a great showcase of Kobe’s career. It’s a celebration of his career, what he has done in the NBA. I also think at some point the NBA should bring in Kevin Garnett, doing the same thing,” TNT analyst Kenny Smith said.
“It’s a celebration of two guys over the last 20 years, two decades, [who have] probably been at the peak of not only their basketball abilities, but their teams, and exemplify the NBA and what it has been all about. I would love to see them bring in Kevin Garnett as well and make it a celebration for those two guys.”
Tipoff is 7:30 p.m. Sunday on TNT and TBS at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto. It’s the first All-Star Game held outside the U.S.
“What I love about them is their enthusiasm. They bring that hockey enthusiasm,” TV analyst Chris Webber said of the Canadian fans. “Toronto is not only a wonderful city to hang out in but is a wonderful city as a sports fan. The Toronto fans are going to give us one we are not used to because they haven’t had a chance to show it.”
San Antonio’s Gregg Popovich will coach the West and Cleveland’s Tyronn Lue leads the East.
Snub
Depending on where you stand, the biggest All-Star snub was leaving Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki off the team.
Nowtizki is leading the Mavericks in scoring at 17.6 and had a game-winning shot against the Los Angeles Lakers.
The revamped team is playing above expectations. Yet, neither Nowitzki nor anyone else on the team was selected for the game. Owner Mark Cuban made it clear on Twitter that he wasn’t happy that Nowitzki was left off.
Halftime music
Grammy Award-winning singer Sting will perform at halftime. Sting, the former frontman of The Police, will perform a compilation of his most celebrated hits, including Every Breath You Take, Roxanne and Fields Of Gold.
New threads
The game’s uniforms, provided by adidas, incorporate elements indigenous to Canada and pay homage to Toronto’s NBA history.
The red-and-white Western Conference and white-and-blue Eastern Conference uniforms feature a maple leaf overlay on the front of the jerseys as a tribute to the national symbol of Canada, while Toronto’s cityscape is featured across the back to represent the host city.
A star patch that incorporates the maple leaf and NBA logo is displayed on the upper back of the uniforms, while black-and-gold jock tags display the Toronto Raptors’ alternate team colors and claw logo. Featured on the jersey’s neck liner and shorts’ draw strings is a mosaic of flag colors that represent the multinational makeup of the league’s players.
The All-Stars will wear warm-ups that embrace Toronto’s winter fashion and style. Black-and-heather gray fleece jackets include star patches that acknowledge the number of NBA All-Star appearances for each player, while patches on the right zipper pocket note the game’s superlatives, such as most valuable player, rookie of the year, etc.
Basketball brand
The All-Star game is spotlighting the 125th anniversary of the birth of basketball. Dr. James Naismith, a Canadian, invented the game in 1891. Toronto hosted the first game in NBA history on Nov. 1, 1946, at Maple Leaf Gardens.
The logo integrates the CN Tower silhouette with the team’s red, white and black colors. Additional secondary logos include a signature NBA “star” logo inside a dynamic maple leaf and an All-Star toque logo, featuring a clawed star, which pays tribute to the popular accessory worn during Canada’s winter months.
“Canadian basketball is on a roll right now,” TNT analyst Charles Barkley said. “If you look at the NBA Draft the last couple of years, Andrew Wiggins, Tristan Thompson, Anthony Bennett [are all from there]. They’ve had two of the last five No. 1 picks from Canada. … I think it’s one of the best cities in the world; they have some of the best fans. … It’s going to be great to shine a light on that city.”
Triple threat
Golden State has three players on the team for the first time since the 1975-76 season. They are starter Stephen Curry and reserves Draymond Green and Klay Thompson. They are the first Golden State trio since Rick Barry, Phil Smith and Jamaal Wilkes played in the game 40 years ago.
Home game
Toronto’s DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry are the first starting backcourt to play in an All-Star Game in their home city since the Los Angeles Lakers’ Jerry West and Gail Goodrich did it in 1972.
A look back
Russell Westbrook scored 41 points, one shy of Wilt Chamberlain’s record set in 1962, on the way to All-Star Game MVP honors in the West’s 163-158 win in New York last year.
By the numbers
3 Players in NBA history to be named an All-Star, Finals MVP and Defensive Player of the Year: Michael Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon and first-time All-Star selection Kawhi Leonard.
12 Canadians playing in the NBA, including Dwight Powell of the Dallas Mavericks, more than any other country outside the United States.
14 Consecutive seasons TNT has aired the All-Star Game, marking Turner Sports’ 31st year of NBA All-Star coverage.
26 Points, Kevin Durant’s All-Star Game scoring average, highest of all time.
27 All-Star Games covered by TNT sideline reporter Craig Sager, who returns this season after battling leukemia. Play-by-play announcer Marv Albert will be calling his 21st All-Star Game.
60th Pick, the final selection, in the 2011 NBA Draft, which was first-time All-Star selection Isaiah Thomas.
216 NBA players and legends participating in All-Star events, including 41 members of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Source: NBA
This story was originally published February 13, 2016 at 5:03 PM with the headline "Kobe Bryant, Toronto add spice to NBA All-Star Game."