NBA All-Star Weekend is here!
The celebrations are already underway with the Celebrity All-Star Game and Rising Stars Challenge taking place on Friday.
In the Celebrity All-Star Game, Seahawks receiver DK Blinded Metcalf to become MVP and help Team Dwayne beat Team Ryan 81-78. There was some controversy at the end of the match when WWE wrestler The Miz hit a 3-pointer that would have leveled the game. However, he fired the shot late and gave Team Dwayne the win.
At the Rising Stars Challenge, Pau Gasol’s team emerged victorious from the four-team tournament. Gasol’s team beat Joakim Noah’s team 25-20 in the finals when Jose Alvarado hit a 3-point shot to reach the 25-point threshold. Gasol, Noah and Deron Williams were each drafted from a pool of the top 21 rookies and sophomores to fill their respective seven-man rosters, while Jason Terry coaches a roster made up of potential G League players.
Here are the top highlights from Friday’s celebrations!
Ascender Challenge
Murphy on the way
Trey Murphy gave fans a sneak peek of what’s to come in Saturday’s slam dunk contest by hitting a hard dunk in Friday’s challenge.
Jose tires
Jose Alvarado saw his Pelicans teammate take off earlier and decided to score himself. He scored nine straight points for Team Pau.
Evil pass from Nembhard
Andrew Nembhard threw a behind-the-back pass to Alvarado to help Team Pau win.
Keegan calls it!
Keegan Murray helped Team Pau reach the goal of 40 points to help Team Pau beat Team Deron and advance to the finals.
Giddey gives
Josh Giddey gave Evan Mobley a bounce pass assist to help Team Joakim extend their lead over Team Jason and the G Leaguers. He also did it while putting the microphone on.
Mac on the go
Mac McClung showed his moves on the fast break to help the G Leagues take the lead.
Jumpman Jeremy
Jeremy Sochan headed up for a dunk to help Team Joakim extend their lead late on.
Grimes says this is game
Quentin Grimes finished it off with a pullup 3-pointer to send Team Joakim through to the finals.
Scottie Slam!
Scottie Barnes turned a casual drive to the rim into a hard dunk to give Team Pau an early lead in the finals.
Alvarado lets them hear it
At the microphone, Alvarado said he was going to the rim. He did so and made the bucket to help Team Pau.
Quentin is cooking
Grimes scored 12 of Team Joakim’s first 16 points in the finals to keep the matchup tight.
Alvarado ends it
Alvarado found the ball and quickly shot up to end the game and give Team Pau the title.
Alvarado called it
Alvarado told Donovan Mitchell that he would hit the game-winning shot just before the shot, which would help him become MVP for the Rising Stars Challenge.
Celebrity All Star Game
DK drops dunks
The star receiver showed his hops early in Friday’s game.
Simu shoots from the depths!
Actor Simu Liu dumped a 4-pointer to help Team Dwyane early.
Who is officiating?
Former NBA player-turned-broadcaster Richard Jefferson helped referee the game in the second quarter as it became a six-on-six match.
Don’t get fined, Giannis!
Giannis Antetokounmpo, who served as Team Dwyane’s assistant coach, offered a few choice words of criticism of Jefferson’s post, negatively comparing him to a certain NBA umpire.
Calvin can dip too.
Calvin Johnson of the NFL Hall of Fame showed Metcalf he could take on him.
Surprising additions
Former NBA All-Star Carlos Boozer joined Team Dwyane for the second half, while Jefferson traded his whistle for a jersey to join Team Ryan.
The former players still have it
Boozer played a lockdown defense and Jefferson also dunked to the surprise of fans at Friday’s game.
DK is still diving, but Albert Pujols has something to say about it
Metcalf showed his athleticism late as well, throwing down a pair of dunks. Meanwhile, recently retired MLB legend helped Team Ryan stay in the game.
The Miz does it! But it doesn’t count.
The Miz almost sent the game into overtime, but his shot came just a tad late.
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