Sprite Slam Dunk: Preview

   Arguably the most anticipated contest of all of All-Star weekend, this game is featuring the biggest names in decades to conclude the Saturday events. All-Stars Damian Lillard, John Wall, and Paul George have made this such an anticipated event this year. Returning champion Terrence Ross has had a great season of late too and it will be very difficult for any of the other contestants to beat his acrobatic high flying dunks that he hasn't been shy to show off in games. Just how long has it been since there were so many stars in the contest? Via NBA.com:

This marks the first time in 26 years that three All-Stars are competing in the Sprite Slam Dunk. In the 1988 competition in Chicago, All-Stars Clyde Drexler, Michael Jordan, and Dominique Wilkins squared off, with Jordan claiming the crown in front of the hometown fans.

  Here are the teams:
Eastern Conference: Paul George (Indiana Pacers), Terrence Ross (Toronto Raptors), John Wall (Washington Wizards)
Western Conference: Harrison Barnes (Golden State Warriors), Damian Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers), Ben McLemore (Sacramento Kings)
   The format for this game has changed this year into a team competition too, and here's the details of the controversial change from NBA.com:

This year's event will feature the participants competing as a team -- three players representing the Eastern Conference and three players representing the Western Conference -- in an above-the-rim two-round format. In a significant first in the event's history, the competition will tip off with a Freestyle Round where the dunkers for each conference will have 90 seconds to showcase as many dunks as they want. At the conclusion of the Freestyle Round, the panel of judges will then choose a winner by voting "East" or "West." The winning conference will earn the advantage of deciding whether its dunkers will dunk first or second in the head-to-head battles that take place in the Battle Round.

The Battle Round will feature head-to-head matchups pitting East dunkers vs. West dunkers, with the judges choosing a winner for each battle. Upon losing a head-to-head battle, that dunker is then eliminated from the competition. The first team to win three battles will win the competition and be crowned 2014 Sprite Slam Dunk champions. Complete rules for the 2014 Sprite Slam Dunk and State Farm All-Star Saturday Night can be found on mediacentral.nba.com.

After the competition, fans will also have the opportunity to vote for the player of their choice as "Dunker of the Night" through SMS, Twitter, NBA.com and the NBA GameTime app.

  Personally I don't like the change and think they should have stayed with the classic format. It just feels like they're trying to make this a kids game, where there aren't as many "losers". The "winner" is the team so the individual best dunker won't actually be recognized as the sole champ, an idea I don't like and others have questioned as well.   Expectations/Predictions:
   For the West team to win this they're going to have to be extremely creative as they haven't showcased the athletic throw downs during games that the East constantly has. Ross and George seem like the 2 best dunkers in the group from what they've shown before, but the West's dunkers aren't too shabby either. Lillard has competed in 2 previous events so his athleticism(while already questioned) will be put to the test while facing all these elite dunkers tonight. Hopefully cheesy props will be avoided and this year can help bring back the dunk contest and set up the contest for strong contestants for years to come. We'll just have to see tonight, tune into TNT or TNT Overtime to see how this all goes down.
   Thanks,
      Phillip

Foot Locker Three-Point Shootout: Preview

   The much anticipated Three-Point Shootout, with some of the best shooters in the competition from top to bottom in years. Not really much to say about this other than it should be a fun short event to watch. The event's simple, breakdown by NBA.com:

Five shooting stations will be set up around the three-point line, with four Official Spalding NBA game balls worth one point each and one Spalding NBA All-Star 2014 commemorative "money ball" worth two points at each location. New to this year's contest, each player will also be able to switch one of the five shooting locations to a full rack of five "money balls," each of which will be worth two points.

The contestants in this years event:
Eastern Conference: Arron Afflalo (Orlando), Bradley Beal (Washington), Kyrie Irving (Cleveland), Joe Johnson (Brooklyn)
Western Conference: Marco Belinelli (San Antonio), Stephen Curry (Golden State), Damian Lillard (Portland), Kevin Love (Minnesota)
The winner from each Conference will face off in the championship round. Here's the incentives behind winning:

For the second consecutive year, the Eastern and Western conferences will compete during State Farm All-Star Saturday Night in an evening of challenges that will raise money for charity. NBA Cares and State Farm will make a joint donation of $500,000 as part of the event, with $100,000 awarded to each event's winning conference's charities and $25,000 going to the charities of the runner-up for each event. The Eastern Conference will be playing for the American Heart Association and the U.S. Fund for UNICEF while the Western Conference will compete for Teach for America and Wounded Warrior Project®. All-Stars Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors and George, winner of the 2012-13 Kia NBA Most Improved Player Award, will serve as captains of the Western and Eastern Conferences, respectively. The charities were selected by George and Curry, the NBA, and State Farm.

Tune in to TNT or TNT Overtime to see who the champion will be, or expect it to be on Sportscenter and ESPN.com later tonight.
   Thanks,
      Phillip

Taco Bell skills Challenge: Preview

   Highlighted by returning champion Damian Lillard, the Taco Bell skills challenge is a fun event that tests players shooting, passing, and quickness. This is a "Team event" with 2 players on 4 different teams. The teams will face off against the other in their Conference first and then the winners of each conference will face off to decide the champions. DeMar DeRozan is the next biggest name player as he was named to his first NBA All-Star game, and Victor Oladipo is the leader in the ROY race so he's a big name trying to raise his profile even more too.
   Breakdown of the teams via NBA.com:

Representing the Eastern Conference are DeRozan and Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks on one team, and Michael Carter-Williams of the Philadelphia 76ers and Victor Oladipo of the Orlando Magic on the other.

Joining Lillard on one Western Conference team is Trey Burke of the Utah Jazz, while Reggie Jackson of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Goran Dragic of the Phoenix Suns comprise the other.

   Of course given this event is the Taco Bell skills challenge then there are donations involved related to Taco Bell too:

As part of this year's 2014 Taco Bell® Skills Challenge, four lucky teens will paired with the NBA participants. Through the Taco Bell Foundation for Teens, a total of $120,000 will be donated in support of educational scholarships and to Boys & Girls Clubs of America, with the teen paired with the winning team receiving a $30,000 educational scholarship.

For the second consecutive year, the Eastern and Western conferences will compete during State Farm All-Star Saturday Night in an evening of challenges that will raise money for charity. NBA Cares and State Farm will make a joint donation of $500,000 as part of the event, with $100,000 awarded to each event's winning conference's charities and $25,000 going to the charities of the runner-up for each event. The Eastern Conference will be playing for the American Heart Association and the U.S. Fund for UNICEF while the Western Conference will compete for Teach for America and Wounded Warrior Project®. All-Stars Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors and George, winner of the 2012-13 Kia NBA Most Improved Player Award, will serve as captains of the Western and Eastern Conferences, respectively. The charities were selected by George and Curry, the NBA, and State Farm.

   Predictions/Expectations:
   Well the first round is over as I write this(busy day), but I expect Damian Lillard and Trey Burke to take the championship round as both are competitive and Lillard wants to not just compete but do well and try to win all 5 events he is in and raise the Trailblazer's and his own national profile. A short event but fun to watch with real basic skills being put to the test. Watch the game on TNT or TNT Overtime on NBA.com, or check the highlights if you don't have time today.
   Thanks,
      Phillip