Loving Las Vegas!

Right now, I’m waiting to go to The Mirage with several other NBA All-Star Dance Team members. The famous Carnegie Deli in New York has named a sandwich after us! They’re going to unveil it at The Mirage, and we’ll probably have to take a bite or two for the camera. I have no idea what’s on it, but I’m sure it will be excellent.

Other girls have been doing appearances all over Las Vegas, some early as 6 a.m., doing things like local news morning shows and even pretending to work for Southwest Airlines at the airport. Southwest flew all of us from around the country to Las Vegas, so a few of them have been doing things like greeting travelers as they board the plane. Everyone here wants to be involved with the All-Star festivities, but the players aren’t here yet - so we get to do all of it! It’s a lot of work rushing all these different places but really fun to get others excited about this weekend.

I flew out of Detroit on Monday and stopped in Chicago, where I met up with the Pacers’ dancer, Amanda, and we flew straight to Vegas from there. I had to get used to the time difference, between that and all the excitement, it was hard to fall asleep!

I didn’t have that problem Tuesday night. We rehearsed all day long, from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., with just a few breaks. We’ve never really had to leave the ballroom at our hotel; our appearances are the only time we’ve really had to see what’s going on in the city. The ballroom has an area to relax, food and drinks to keep our energy up, our wardrobe area, and the dancing floor, of course.

The long hours were tough on my neck and back, but they also gave me a chance to know some of the other girls, which I really wanted to do. We definitely chatted about the different things our NBA teams do for us, and all I can say is, I’m glad to be with the Pistons! Some dance teams don’t even get to sit out on the court and watch the game, they have to run back into the tunnel. One dance team even gets free teeth whitening - free teeth whitening! Who wouldn’t love that? We’ve been so busy a lot of the girls hope to go out together and finally enjoy Vegas on Sunday after the game.

On Wednesday, the East Coast and West Coast dancers practiced separate routines. The West practiced first, which meant I got to sleep in until 10 a.m., which was great. But that night we rehearsed at the Thomas & Mack Center, where the game will be, for the first time - from 11 p.m. to midnight. I hope no one had a 6 a.m. appearance this morning!

Let me tell you, this is going to be an amazing show. The East’s routine is more like hip-hop, with Jay-Z, Nelly Furtado, music like that. The West is doing a more rock-and-roll sort of show, with Lenny Kravitz’s music. The wardrobe and the routines are very different, much more risqué than what we do at The Palace. But we’re in Vegas, so we pretty much expected that. Our choreographer, Laurie Ann Gibson, has worked with artists like P. Diddy (or is it Puff Daddy?) for his music videos, and she’s been amazing.

Our wardrobe is smoking hot - boots, high heels with rhinestones, the works. We have about 3 or 4 different outfits, but they’re all pretty much very skimpy, very sexy. Each dance team member gets to do four routines, two on Saturday during the other All-Star events that we get to watch from the stands, and then two more during the All-Star Game.

I definitely want to convince Rebecca (the Automotion dance team director) to use some of these routines at The Palace, I think everyone at The Palace would love it. I’m not sure she’ll go for the outfits, though!

So make sure you watch the All-Star Game Sunday, and I’ll see you back at The Palace for Guys’ Night Out on Wednesday!

Erin