All-Star Saturday Wrap-Up
by Scott Agness
February 17, 2013, 12:03 AM
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Pacers fans tuned into Saturday night's NBA All-Star competitions for the possibility of seeing their own win. No trophy will return home with Gerald Green (dunk contest), Paul George (three-point challenge), or Tamika Catchings (shooting stars), but they all represented Indianapolis well.
Highlight: Watch Green's 1st Dunk »
Up first was the Shooting Stars competition, where a trio of players on each team would see who could hit from six spots on the floor the quickest. Tamika was on Team Lopez, along with Muggsy Bogues and Brook Lopez of the Brooklyn Nets. They didn't make it out of the first round, however, and it was Team Bosh in the East that won the event.
Then came the Skills Challenge, which was a combination between skills and effort. Everyone that participated had the skills - dribbling around objects, passing into a circle opening and knocking down a three-pointer -- but it was rookie Damian Lillard that wanted it the most. Points to the West team.
Paul George took part in the three-point contest, but finished with a low score of 10 points. He's a rhythm guy and never got in a zone. George failed to get through the last rack but he clearly enjoyed just being down there. Next up for him is the All-Star game Sunday night. Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving won the shootout.
The dunk contest wrapped up the evening. The fan-favorite event featured many complex dunks that took multiple tries to complete successfully. Gerald Green nailed his first round dunk, a reverse dunk from a pass off the glass by teammate Lance Stephenson. He got fancy in the second round, cutting down the net ahead of trying a dunk he said had the chance to be the all-time best. After about ten attempts, he finally was able to dunk twice in one jump, first with his left hand and then with his right. But, by the time he completed the dunk, the clock had already expired and the crowd was antsy.
Terrence Ross of the Toronto Raptors and defending champion Jeremy Evans of the Utah Jazz faced off in the final round. Evans successfully dunked over a painting of him doing the exact dunk and then he signed it. Ross earned the title with a windmill one-handed slam off the backboard while in a Vince Carter jersey, followed by a between-the-legs jam over a ball boy.
After all was said and done, the Western Conference defeated the Eastern Conference 140 to 125, but the night delivered $555,000 to charity. As part of the event, NBA Cares and State Farm made a joint donation of $500,000 to four charitable organizations. With the victory by the Western Conference, $350,000 will be donated to Boys & Girls Club of America and Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign. Meanwhile, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America and Make-A-Wish America will receive $150,000 with the Eastern Conference’s runner-up finish.
All-Star weekend wraps up Sunday night with the 2013 All-Star Game (8 PM EST, TNT). Paul George was selected to the East team and he'll play with some of the best in today's game, like LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Garnett.