2007 NBA All-Star Game

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

2007 NBA All-Star Game
1 2 3 4 Total
East 31 28 29 44 132
West 39 40 40 34 153
Date February 18, 2007
Arena Thomas and Mack Center
City Las Vegas, Nevada
MVP Kobe Bryant
National anthem {{{anthem}}}
Referees #24 Mike Callahan
#33 Sean Corbin
#13 Monty McCutchen
Halftime {{{halftime}}}
Attendance 15,694
Network Turner Broadcasting Network (TNT)
Announcers
NBA All-Star Game

< 2006

2008 >

The 2007 NBA All-Star Game was played on Sunday, February 18, 2007 at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas' Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. It was the 56th annual All-Star Game. It was the first time the All-Star Game was played in a city without an NBA franchise and first to be played on a college campus. The game was televised on TNT at 9 ET as part as the NBA on TNT production studios.

The Western Conference set All-Star records with 69 field goals and 52 assists on its way to an emphatic 153-132 win over the Eastern Conference All-Stars at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. Amare Stoudemire racked up 29 points and nine boards and Carmelo Anthony had 20 and nine for the West. 2006 All-Star MVP LeBron James led the Eastern Conference with 28 points, six rebounds and six assists and Dwight Howard tallied 20 points and 12 boards. Kobe Bryant, previously the MVP of the 2002 All-Star Game, moved from 11th to 10th place on all-time All-star scoring, surpassing Magic Johnson. Bryant posted 31 points, grabbed 5 rebounds, and dished out 6 assists and steals; for his performance, he was selected as the MVP of the All-Star game receiving a more favorable reception fom the crowd than 2002. Also, Dirk Nowitzki became the first European born-player to be a starter at the All-Star Game.

Announced on August 5, 2005 the NBA, led by Commissioner David Stern, would not allow wagering on the results of the game in the state of Nevada.[citation needed]

Contents

[edit] Las Vegas

The choice to choose Vegas as the location was widely regarded as a bid by the city to give Las Vegas its first sports franchise. Mayor Oscar Goodman met with David Stern to discuss the possibility during the events. On April 5, Goodman sent a letter to the commisionner, requesting a meeting to sort out the matter.[1] All-Star MVP and former teammates Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal welcomed the possibility, amid the gambling.[2]

[edit] The All-Star rosters

In one of the most surprising All-Star starting lineups in recent history, 2006 All-Star MVP LeBron James was the top vote-getter, receiving 2,516,049 votes for the Eastern Conference's small forward position. Only one person has received more votes in NBA history, Yao Ming with 2,558,278.[3] Other players that received more than two million votes in this game: guards Kobe Bryant of the Lakers and Dwyane Wade of the Miami Heat and center Yao of the Houston Rockets. All three started at their positions in their respective conference with the exception of Yao Ming due to injury.

In the Western Conference, the race was tight. Allen Iverson, formerly the seven-time East point guard starter, moved to Denver from Philadelphia, attracting votes from reigning NBA MVP Steve Nash. But surprisingly, neither of the two was voted in; both were reserves as swingman Tracy McGrady came in the back door win.[4] Dirk Nowitzki, another player who analysts predicted that would be starting, was not able to muster enough votes to get over former MVP Kevin Garnett's 1,600,000, but was put in by coaches as a reserve and later added to the starting lineup by West coach Mike D'Antoni. Tim Duncan was also voted in as a forward. Carmelo Anthony, the star small forward for the Nuggets, was not voted in as a starter or reserve, contrary to earlier reports that head coaches from the conference would put him in the lineup despite being involved in a brawl, but was allowed as a reserve (because Carlos Boozer was injured). Mehmet Okur of the Utah Jazz and Ray Allen of the Seattle Sonics were chosen by Stern to replace the injured Nash and Iverson.

Gilbert Arenas of the East benefited from Iverson's move to the West. In one of the closest races in game history, Arenas gained enough calls to start as the point guard of the East, over the New Jersey Nets' Vince Carter. Carter was eventually named as a reserve along with teammate Jason Kidd.[5] In a controversial race, Shaquille O'Neal was voted in as starting center for the 14th straight time (despite playing only four games up to that point), over young star Dwight Howard, whose Orlando Magic were a surprise that season. Chris Bosh of the Toronto Raptors was voted by the fans to start, marking the first time a Raptor started since Vince Carter was the top vote getter in his last season in Toronto. The blooming forward was having his best season yet, and coaches and fans mutually agreed that he deserved a starting spot. Supporters of O'Neal defended the fact that the All-Star Game is a fan event, while detractors said this was an example of what was wrong with the voting system.

[edit] Coaches

The coach whose team has the best record in its conference is granted the right to coach their team. However, despite this rule, no one is allowed to coach in two consecutive All-Star Games. The Dallas Mavericks' Avery Johnson, who coached the West last year, fell under this rule so Mike D'Antoni of the Phoenix Suns took his place. The East's coach was Eddie Jordan of the Washington Wizards, as Flip Saunders was ineligible due to coaching the East last year.

[edit] Players

Appearance denotes the number of times the player been selected to play in the All-Star game, including 2007. Jason Kidd of the East and Carlos Boozer, Steve Nash, Allen Iverson, and Yao Ming of the West could not play due to injuries. The game featured seven first time All-Stars.

Eastern Conference All-Stars
Pos. Player Team Appearance
Starters
PG Gilbert Arenas Washington Wizards 3rd
SG Dwyane Wade Miami Heat 3rd
SF LeBron James Cleveland Cavaliers 3rd
PF Chris Bosh Toronto Raptors 2nd
C Shaquille O'Neal Miami Heat 14th
Reserves
PG Chauncey Billups Detroit Pistons 2nd
SF Caron Butler Washington Wizards 1st
SG/SF Vince Carter New Jersey Nets 8th
SG Richard Hamilton Detroit Pistons 2nd
PF/C Dwight Howard Orlando Magic 1st
SG/SF Joe Johnson2 Atlanta Hawks 1st
PG Jason Kidd1 New Jersey Nets 8th
PF/C Jermaine O'Neal Indiana Pacers 6th
Western Conference All-Stars
Pos. Player Team Appearance
Starters
PG Tracy McGrady Houston Rockets 7th
SG Kobe Bryant Los Angeles Lakers 9th
SF Kevin Garnett Minnesota Timberwolves 10th
PF Tim Duncan San Antonio Spurs 9th
C Yao Ming1 Houston Rockets 5th
Reserves
SG Ray Allen2 Seattle SuperSonics 7th
SF Carmelo Anthony2 Denver Nuggets 1st
PF Carlos Boozer1 Utah Jazz 1st
SF Josh Howard2 Dallas Mavericks 1st
PG/SG Allen Iverson1 Denver Nuggets 8th
SF Shawn Marion Phoenix Suns 4th
PG Steve Nash1 Phoenix Suns 5th
PF Dirk Nowitzki Dallas Mavericks 6th
PF/C Mehmet Okur2 Utah Jazz 1st
PG Tony Parker San Antonio Spurs 2nd
PF/C Amare Stoudemire Phoenix Suns 2nd
Team 1 2 3 4 Tot.
East 31 28 29 44 132
West 39 40 40 34 153

^1 Unable to participate due to injury. Nowitzki was named to the starting lineup in place of Yao.[6]
^2 Named to team by commissioner David Stern as replacement for injured player.

[edit] Officials

  • 24 - Mike Callahan
  • 33 - Sean Corbin
  • 13 - Monty McCutchen

[edit] T-Mobile Rookie Challenge

Rookies
Pos. Player Team
SF/PF Andrea Bargnani Toronto Raptors
PG Jordan Farmar Los Angeles Lakers
PG/SG Randy Foye Minnesota Timberwolves
PF/C Jorge Garbajosa Toronto Raptors
SG/SF Rudy Gay Memphis Grizzlies
PF Paul Millsap Utah Jazz
SG/SF Adam Morrison Charlotte Bobcats
PG/SG Brandon Roy Portland Trail Blazers
PG Marcus Williams New Jersey Nets
Sophomores
Pos. Player Team
PF/C Andrew Bogut Milwaukee Bucks
C Andrew Bynum Los Angeles Lakers
PG/SG Monta Ellis Golden State Warriors
PG Raymond Felton Charlotte Bobcats
SF Danny Granger Indiana Pacers
SG Luther Head Houston Rockets
PF David Lee New York Knicks
PG Chris Paul New Orleans Hornets
PG Deron Williams Utah Jazz

[edit] Results

Team 1 2 Tot.
Rookies 48 66 114
Sophomores 77 78 155

David Lee hit all 14 of his field-goal attempts for a game-high 30 points as the Sophomore beat the Rookies for the fifth consecutive year, 155-114. Lee, who added 11 rebounds and four assists, took home MVP of the 2007 Rookie Challenge.

Chris Paul notched rookie-game records of 17 assists and nine steals to go with 16 points. Monta Ellis was the beneficiary of many of Paul's assists, as he had 5 alley-oop dunks in a 3:25 span, en route to scoring 28 points. Rudy Gay and Paul Millsap paced the Rookie squad with 22 points apiece.

This game set a number of records for the Rookie Challenge:

  • Highest scoring half: 78 points (Sophomores 2nd Half)
  • Chris Paul's 17 assist and nine steals

[edit] Coaches

Rookies: Head Coach: Mike O'Koren of the Washington Wizards; Assistant Coach: TBD

Sophomores: Head Coach: Marc Iavaroni of the Phoenix Suns; Assistant Coach: TBD

[edit] Other events

[edit] Foot Locker Three-Point Shootout

See also: NBA All-Star Weekend
Contestants
Pos. Player Team
PG Gilbert Arenas Washington Wizards
SF Jason Kapono Miami Heat
SG Mike Miller Memphis Grizzlies
PF Dirk Nowitzki Dallas Mavericks
PG Jason Terry Dallas Mavericks

Jason Kapono tied Mark Price's final-round record with 24 points and outlasted Gilbert Arenas on his way to the 2007 Foot Locker Three-Point Shootout title. Arenas notched a first-round high of 23 points and had 17 in the finals. Defending champion Dirk Nowitzki had 20 in round one and nine in the finals, and Kapono narrowly made the finals with a first-round score of 19. Mike Miller (18), Damon Jones (15) and Jason Terry (10) were eliminated early.

[edit] Sprite Slam Dunk Contest

The Slam Dunk Contest was a memorable one. Dwight Howard jumped up and dunked while posting a sticker of him laughing, on the backboard. Eventually, Gerald Green and Nate Robinson went to the final round. Robinson looked unimpressive with his first dunk, and Green looked as bad as Robinson. However, Robinson had to do his second dunk after the limited two-minute period, and scored below 40. Green finished it off by getting a perfect score after jumping over a table. The judging panel included an impressive list of former champions who are considered some of the greatest dunkers in NBA history: Michael Jordan, Dominique Wilkins, Julius Erving, Kobe Bryant, and Vince Carter.[7]

Contestants
Pos. Player Team Ht. Wt.
SG Gerald Green Boston Celtics 6-8 200
C Dwight Howard Orlando Magic 6-11 265
PG Nate Robinson New York Knicks 5-9 180
PF Tyrus Thomas Chicago Bulls 6-9 215

[edit] PlayStation Skills Challenge

Contestants
Pos. Player Team
SG Kobe Bryant Los Angeles Lakers
SF LeBron James Cleveland Cavaliers
PG Steve Nash1 Phoenix Suns
PG Chris Paul2 New Orleans Hornets
SG Dwyane Wade Miami Heat

^1 Unable to participate due to injury.
^2 Named as replacement for injured player.

[edit] Result

Round 1
Name Chest Pass Bounce Pass Jump Shot Outlet Pass Time
LeBron James 1 1 2 2 35.4
Chris Paul 3 1 2 3 39.6
Kobe Bryant 1 1 1 1 29.8
Dwyane Wade 2 1 1 1 31.3
Round 2
Name Chest Pass Bounce Pass Jump Shot Outlet Pass Time
Dwyane Wade 1 1 1 1 26.4
Kobe Bryant 5 2 1 1 45.8

Dwyane Wade won his second straight Skills Challenge.

[edit] Haier Shooting Stars Competition

The San Antonio team tried to be the first team to win back-to-back titles. Team Chicago (48.8) and Team Detroit (1:06) advanced to final round. Due to Ben Gordon shooting out of order before Candice Dupree, Detroit won by default.

Contestants
Chicago
Ben Gordon Chicago Bulls
Candice Dupree Chicago Sky
Scottie Pippen Chicago Bulls (Retired)
Detroit
Chauncey Billups Detroit Pistons
Swin Cash Detroit Shock
Bill Laimbeer Detroit Pistons (Retired)
Los Angeles
Smush Parker Los Angeles Lakers
Temeka Johnson Los Angeles Sparks
Michael Cooper Los Angeles Lakers (Retired)
San Antonio
Tony Parker San Antonio Spurs
Kendra Wecker San Antonio Silver Stars
George Gervin San Antonio Spurs (Retired)

[edit] Schedule

[edit] Trivia

  • For the 2007 NBA All-Star Game held in Las Vegas, Leo the Lion of the MGM Grand, and Lady Liberty were dressed in giant replica jerseys. The jersey for Leo was from the West due to the MGM Grand representing Los Angeles. The jersey on Lady Liberty at the New York-New York was representing the East.
  • Since Las Vegas didn't have an NBA Team, one dancer from each of the 30 NBA Teams represented their teams in Las Vegas as part of the inaugural NBA All-Star Dance Team.
  • The 2007 All-Star Game was shot in 3D and projected live at the Mandalay Bay. This is the first time ever that a live event was shown in 3D. PACE provided the 5 3D HD cameras.[8][9]

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Mayor Oscar Goodman's letter to NBA Commissioner David Stern", NBC, 2007-02-13. 
  2. ^ Robin Leach. "All-Star Wrap Up: Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant, David Stern and Mayor Oscar Goodman on the NBA in Vegas", 2007-08-13. 
  3. ^ Mary Schmitt Boyer. "He's the people's choice", The Plain Dealer, 2007-02-03. 
  4. ^ Jonathan Feigen. "T-Mac edges A.I. to join injured Yao with West team=Houston Chronicle", 2007-02-03. 
  5. ^ Ivan Carter. "Arenas To Start All-Star Game", Washington Post, 2007-02-03. 
  6. ^ Paul Coro (2007-02-16). Mavericks' Nowitzki replaces Yao as starter. The Arizona Republic. Retrieved on 2007-02-16.
  7. ^ NBA. "Competitors Set for Sprite Slam Dunk at NBA All-Star Saturday Night Presented by EA Sports", 2007-02-05. 
  8. ^ NBA.com. "SpinCam All-Star Video", 2007-08-24. 
  9. ^ Matthew Brennan. "3D Party Brings All-Star Game To New Dimension", NBA.com, 2007-08-24. 

[edit] External links

v • d • e
NBA All-Star Games
All-Star Weekend • Broadcasters • Rookie Challenge • Shooting Stars Competition • Skills Challenge • Three-point Shootout • Slam Dunk Contest • NBA All-Star Game MVP Award • Legends Classic • List of NBA All-Stars
1950s 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
1960s 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
1970s 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
1980s 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
1990s 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999*
2000s 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
Templates: Most Valuable Players • Slam Dunk Contest Winners • Three-point Shootout Winners • Skills Challenge Winners
*The 1999 All-Star Game was canceled due to the league's lockout.