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Blake Griffin earned MVP honors as the Rookies rally to a 140-131 win against the Sophomores.


Rookies outplay Sophomores for 2nd straight win


LOS ANGELES, FEBRUARY 12th (AP) - Rookies edge Sophomores behind 36 points and 9 rebounds by Blake Griffin.

It seems like the NBA's rookie classes get better and better each year. After the Rookies beat the Sophs last year behind big games by Tyreke Evans and Brandon Jennings, this year's rooks managed to grab a win just again, beating the sophomores in usual fashion, pounding the ball inside and dunking it over and over again.

The Sophomores, led by Warriors' G Stephen Curry, who had 26 points and seemed to already prepare himself for the Foot Locker Threepoint Shootout (he shot 6-12 from downtown) fell down by 13 after the first quarter, getting things done a bit too relaxed.

The Rooks however, made the best out of it and started off the game with great effort. Blake Griffin seems to get better as the season progresses. The Clippers' former number one pick, averaging 15 points and 8 rebounds this season so far, had two vicious dunks and a big block in the first quarter.

The Sophs played too sof(ph)t. How about taking 32 three pointers, hitting 13 of them. Omri Casspi, the Sonics sensation had 24 points and James Harden added 19 off the bench.

The Rookies had their three potential top players leading the team in scoring. Blake Griffin was all over it with 36 points, John Wall had 26 points and 9 dimes and Evan Turner, the number two pick of last year's draft just behind Wall added 21 and 6 assists.

Despite a 40 point output by the Sophomores in the fourth quarter, with some great dunks by Tyreke Evans (last year's ROTY only had 16 points in 23 minutes) and Terrence Williams, they never managed to catch up with the Rookies coached by Kobe Bryant.

Bryant pushed his guys over and over again in the 4th to not give away the lead. "I just cannot loose, as a coach it's even harder than as a player", the Lakers superstar said.

"You cannot really help your team, I was more like yelling at them for the whole fourth quarter", he added.

Sophs Coach Shaq O'Neal, who entered the Staples Center in a retro Orlando Magic jersey of his rookie year seemed more relaxed and enjoyed the game. O'Neal even enjoyed the rookie dunks and had a camera with him for the whole 1st half.

Take a look at the game video and MVP highlights below. Click for a slideshow of the best pictures below.

Picture Slideshow

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Last edited by hova- on Sun Dec 19, 2010 5:00 am, edited 1 time in total.

Awesome, great win for the rookies. Sucks that my man Cousins wasn't in it

Stephen Curry set a new three point shootout record with 26


Curry knocks them down, wears the crown


LOS ANGELES, FEBRUARY 13th (AP) - Stephen Curry hits 15 shots in a row to outbattle Omri Casspi and Dirk Nowitzki for the three point crown.+

Stephen Curry finished what he had started on Friday night, when his sophomores lost against the rookie squad to start off the All-Star weekend.

Curry already hit six three pointers in that game, but needed twelves attempts for it. He was more than slightly above .500% in tonight's contest, setting a new record with 26 points out of 30 possible.

It was a record night anyway, as none of the first six guys starting off the contest was below 20 points in the first round. Ironically, last year's champion Paul Pierce was the "second worst" shooter with 21 points.

Dirk Nowitzki already tied Jason Kapono's record from three years ago as he had 25 points in round one. Nowitzki, Seattle Supersonic Omri Casspi and Stephen Curry proceeded to the 2nd round.

Casspi started the 2nd round but it seemed like the attention got into him as he started slowly but hit his last seven shots to grab 18 points.

Dirk Nowitzki had a phenomenal shooting night. He hit three money balls and went on to 24 points but wasn't able to get off his last shot (which did not get in after time expiring).

Then Stephen Curry started his campaign. The 2nd year point guard of the Golden State Warriors hit his first 15 shots and was tied with Nowitzki before his last shot. Curry stayed ice-cold and hit the money ball to make it 26 points and win the shootout.

"I just could not miss. You know, the basket kept getting bigger and bigger. I never thought I could beat Dirk's 24, but I did", a smiling Curry said after receiving his trophy. Take a look at the scores below and look forward to the 2011 Slam Dunk Contest tonight.

Great all-star weekend coverage so far. Wish Batum would have won the 3pt shootout though!

Unlucky Gallo

Ah, my money was on the Italian. But huge win by the Rooks

Lamrock, thx, good to see you stopping by here. Batum was pretty good with 22, the others were just unstoppable. What about your Blazers D?

mp3, He just was the worst, mr. fanboy Not really unlucky

Thierry •, the Rooks were simply better. Griffin, Wall, Turner > Evans, Curry & co.

Yeah man. Haven't always been replying, but have been following. Blazers D is pretty much done. Lost interest since they aren't a lot of fun to use and I kind of see to much of Portland already.

Started an offline association with some great sliders I found (if anyone has shitty sliders and is interested, I'll send you the link), but haven't made a thread, since I figured there wouldn't really be interest given my Thierryitis.

Looking forward to the rest of the season.

After grabbing the Rookie Challenge MVP, Blake Griffin also took home the Slam dunk honors


Griffin takes down Budinger, wins Slam Dunk Contest "at home"


LOS ANGELES, FEBRUARY 13th (AP) - Blake Griffin earns a 50 in his last dunk to grab a one-point win over Chase Budinger.

What a phenomenal All-Star saturday. After a record three point shootout (with Stephen Curry setting a new record for points made), the highly anticipated 2011 Slam Dunk Contest just held what it had promised.

After an unspectacular contest last year, the NBA tried to make the whole even more attractive this year by bringing it outdoor to a Venice Beach streetcourt. Further the price rewarded went up to 100K$ which should be used for charity purposes.

Blake Griffin started off the contest in his LA homestand. Griffin pulled off a very solid two handed reverse jam after a behind the back toss to himself and got 46 points from the judges, who were no one else than Dominique Wilkins, Michael Jordan, George Gervin and Magic Johnson.

Last year's finalist Demar Derozan's first dunk was almost the same dunk, but he started far away from the basket and it just looked a bit "cleaner" so to say, the sophomore from Toronto got rewarded with 47 points by the generous jury.

Shannon Brown, a bit of a disappointment last year, promised big things and his first dunk looked very nice as he glided from the freethrow line making it look so effortless. He earned 46 points.

The best dunk of the first round was set by the "Red Rocket" Chase Budinger. Budinger did a sweet bounce-pass behind the back toss against the backboard and finished with a nasty one hand tomahawk, which got him 48 points.

Shannon once again disappoints, Griffin a bit lucky

In the 2nd round, Blake Griffin started with an self-alley oop off the floor and finished with a two handed windmill jam. The jury once again was very generous giving him 48 points after several tries.

Demar DeRozan had once again the almost same dunk, but finished one handed and only got 46 points. The jury earned some boohs because it seemed a bit obvious that the homestand for Griffin helped him to proceed into the 2nd round.

But it was not only the home advantage, because Shannon Brown had more of the same, being highly anticipated. Brown tried a very difficult 360° dunk but could not power it down after four tries. He ended up with a quite simple reverse jam and only earned a 40.

Chase Budinger had something left in the tank. He threw a toss in the air and went up very high to throw it down with the left hand. Good enough for 47 points and the final round.


Big Blake and the Red Rocket

After a solid first round, the finals turned out to be classic, just what everybody was hoping for.

Blake Griffin had a wicked first dunk. He made a behind the back toss and turned about 270° in the air to throw down the big jam. It looked like he even tried to add some windmill flavour. The crowd went nuts for the first time of the night and Big Blake earned 49 points.

But Chase Budinger knew how to counter. The ex volleyball player showed his great hops and made a handspring to the basket still able to get up high enough and finish with two hands.

"I also tried to get it behind my back, but I felt like I did not have enough air and canceled. I was lucky that I still was able to throw it down". Budinger got 48 points for his dunk.

He only had a five minutes break, because the new rules set force the guy with less points to start off the final showdown. And boy, the "Red Rocket" did not disappoint.

Budinger tossed the ball to himself and pull off a between the legs with a one handed finish. The judges gave 10 across the board to make it 50, the first 50 of the night.

"I have never seen a guy with that light skin and such red hair pulling off things like that", Charles Barkley said right after the dunk. Shaquille O'Neal and Kevin Garnett, Celtics teammates threw themselves on the floor whilst Rockets teammate Kevin Martin's eyes simply did not get smaller.

In order to win, Blake Griffin needed a 50. Blake ordered his team mate Baron Davis to help him carrying a ball stand of the threepoint shootout in front of the basket.

The stand was about 6 feet away from the basket. Griffin failed on his first two attempts. "It seemed like it was over, to top that Budinger dunk, he had to come up with something special and he couldn't", Kenny Smith, a contest fanatic said.

But Griffin's third attempt just worked out how he had planned it. He threw a behind the back bound lop to himself and caught it mid air right over the ball stand. It seemed like Griffin stood in the air as he hammered in a two handed windmill jam.

"FIIIIIIIIIFTY", the whole stadium yelled and the judges just could not resist. Blake Griffin was the winner of a spectacular 2011 Slam Dunk Contest.

"I am just glad that things worked out and that I could represent my team the right way", the Clippers forward said later. Watch all the highlights below.

Scores

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Lamrock, yeah I often watch Ds and don't reply, it depends on my interest in the section in general. Right now it's fun again, and in a week I may take two weeks off, who knows.

Slam Dunk Contest up! Watch the vid! some cool dunks in there. I had a little mistake with DeRozan's 2nd dunk in the vid, a short clip of Griffin appears, but it does not bother. You like that All-Star weekend coverage? Tell me ... because I am not sure if it's worth it or not, although it's fun. It does not really help to the progress of the D though.

Just some feedback desired.

The judges are biased, I think the contest should go to a dunk off.

Yeah, that was a great recap. The X would disagree with me here, but as long as it isn't a hassle, I enjoy the All-Star Weekend recaps. Especially in a rebuilding year, it breaks up the monotony of the season.

Wouldn't be surprised if that dunk contest resembles the real one. Blake Griffin can throw it down!

This is looking great my brother. I'm loving it. My favorite story right now.

Will you be posting the All-Star Game soon?

Nice, Griffin winnning. Can't wait for the All-Star game!

I didn't read the recaps, it's just not my way when it comes to All-Star Weekend

Although I did watch the Dunk Contest video, very sweet

I will say this though, Blake Griffin was robbed on round 2 dunk 1 as that was definitely a 50. Damn right nasty & high degree of difficulty

Overall I think Chase was robbed. Chase deserved to win based on his two dunks. All hail Chase

Lamrock, thanks. Yeah, Griffin can dunk. He's not a real "big" like Howard, but still his dunks look power all the way. Sent you a PM about the sliders.

dare, it was tough to rate the dunks properly, but I did my best. Most of them were pulled off by the CPU. The winning dunk in the end was pulled of by me (I have no skillz in the Dunk Challenge), so maybe I was a bit biased

Sit, thank you, man. I'll be posting the ASG maybe this night or tomorrow. After that I will go on with a small trimester recap and try to finish this season soon. I have some time now, but will have to do some university stuff soon.

|)e8*, thanks man

The X, I just wrote them to give a overview, but I don't think they are really worth it. Did not take my that long to write them (maybe 10 mins).

The vid wasn't that hard to make, just used my digicam which made it quite easy and fun.

The judges did not want to pull many 50s, but were quite generous with the other dunks I guess. Chase will get another chance next year, that is for sure. In fact, I'm glad you liked it, since Lamrock already mentioned you are not the ASG guy.

Yeah i thought Chase should of won that too , but shannon Brown pretty much one step from the free throw line

mp3, Nah, it just looked like one step, he took some distance before. Seems like a lot of guys think that Chase should of gotten it.

Hov, quick Q. How did you do the dunk contest? Did you play as one of the guys or what?

I have never seen a guy with that light skin and such red hair pulling off things like that.

I think Bud got robbed. Those dunks looked mighty hard to pull off, especially the first one.

Houndy, I played as one guy, but most of the dunks recorded were pulled off by the other participant controlled by the CPU. I pulled off the last dunk by Griffin though.

Axel., ye, he's just too white He will definitely get another invitation next year

I wouldn't be surprised if Blake plays the real life Slam Dunk Contest.

Excellent recap for the All-Star weekend, love the Slamdunk contest vid. My bet Griffin won.

Rajon Rondo led the East to the 2nd consecutive win and the 5th in 7 years

East beats West in L.A., 139-129


LOS ANGELES, FEBRUARY 14th (AP) - Rajon Rondo earns MVP honors posting 24 points, 7 assists and 2 steals in a winning effort.

The slam dunk contest was the definite highlight of this year's All-Star weekend. And whilst the All-Star game on Sunday is also posting a lot of highlights usually, it's more about the mixture of playing basketball, posting highlights, a relaxed atmosphere and - in the end - fighting for the win.

This year's All-Star game had everything, except the latter. The Eastern All-Stars, led by LeBron James (25 points) and Rajon Rondo (24 points) led for the entire game and it never felt like the game would shift.

The only two minutes the West came close to the East were right after half-time, when Kevin Durant (14 points) knocked down back-to-back threes. Home-town hero Kobe Bryant played only 24 minutes and had 16 points for the West.

"Phil and me had an arrangement", Bryant said. "He wouldn't let me pay more minutes, even if I wanted".

The West's leading scorer was Dirk Nowitzki, for the first time in his 10th year as an All-Star. Internationals played a big part of the game as the West's first possession in the 2nd quarter ended in an alley-oop from Manu Ginobli to Pau Gasol. The Argentinian had 14 points and hit four of his five shots from downtown.

Two of the most beautiful plays belonged to the East and their figurehead LeBron James. The Heat forward had a great dunk in the lane soaring over Chris Paul and past Rudy Gay. At the end of the fourth quarter he brought down the hammer after an alley-oop pass from mid-court by Gilbert Arenas.

Rudy Gay, in his first All-Star game, tried to make himself a name scoring 14 points. The other debutants, Al Jefferson (two points in 13 minutes), Andrew Bogut (2 points in 8 minutes) had quiet nights.

The most versatile performance came from Chris Bosh, who had 12 points, 10 boards and six assists.

Bosh was a favorite for the All-Star game MVP award, but Rajon Rondo took home the honors for the first time in his 2nd All-Star appearance.

"I thought it would be LeBron once again", the only Celtic in the game said later. "But I am glad to bring home this award, representing my mates KG, PP, and Ray Ray".

LeBron James meanwhile did not want to talk about the MVP award giving the suspicion of feeling pretty snubbed. All in all, with the All-Star game being done for now, the interesting part of the season should start now.

Take a look at the game video and MVP highlights below. Click for a slideshow of the best pictures below.

Picture Slideshow

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Last edited by hova- on Tue Dec 21, 2010 7:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.