By Rockin’ Reese
The NBA has taken over Indianapolis, Indiana for All-Star Weekend. For the next 3 days, there will be basketball related activity all over Indy, throughout multiple venues. Let’s take a look at everything that will happen.
All weekend long at the Indiana Convention Center, the NBA Crossover will have fans interact with NBA superstars & legends, play NBA 2K, and attend concerts featuring music acts like (2-time Grammy winning hip-hop star) T-Pain, (Grammy winning DJ/songwriter) Zedd, (Billboard Music Award winner) Walker Hayes, (4-time Grammy winning country music star) Keith Urban, & (5-time Grammy winning hip-hop star) Li’l Wayne.
Tonight at 7pm ET on ESPN, it’s the All-Star Celebrity Game from Lucas Oil Stadium. This year, a team coached by (2011 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee & 3-time Super Bowl Champion) Shannon Sharpe, (Grammy, Billboard, & American Music Award winning hip-hop star) 50 Cent, & (2021 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee & 2-time Super Bowl Champion) Peyton Manning will compete against a team coached by (“First Take” host) Stephen A. Smith, Li’l Wayne, & (Las Vegas Aces forward & 2-time WNBA Champion) A’ja Wilson.
Team Shannon will feature stars like (Dallas Cowboys linebacker) Micah Parsons, (Seattle Storm guard & 2023 WNBA All-Star Game MVP) Jewell Loyd, & (“Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty” star) Quincy Isaiah. Team Stephen will feature stars like (2009-10 NBA Champion) Metta Sandford-Artest, (Phoenix Mercury guard) Natasha Cloud, & (Houston Texans quarterback) CJ Stroud.
Then, at 9pm ET on TNT, it’s be the Rising Stars Challenge from Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Four teams will be coached by (2023 Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame inductee & 2-time NBA Champion) Pau Gasol, (1999-2000 NBA finalist with the Indiana Pacers) Jalen Rose, (2011 WNBA MVP & 2012 WNBA Champion/Finals MVP) Tamika Catchings, & (3-time NBA all-star) Detlef Schrempf.
Team Paul will include (San Antonio Spurs forward/center) Victor Wembanyama. Team Jalen will include (Pacers guard/forward) Bennedict Mathurin. Team Tamika will include (2022-23 NBA Rookie of the Year; Orlando Magic forward) Paolo Banchero. Team Detlef will include (Indiana Mad Ants forward) Oscar Tshiebwe. The first match will feature Team Jalen vs. Team Tamika. Then, it will be Team Detlef vs. Team Pau. The 2 winning teams will compete against each other in the finals.
Tomorrow at 2pm ET on TNT, ESPN 2, & NBA TV, the NBA will celebrate Black History Month with a special HBCU Classic game from Gainbridge Fieldhouse, as the Winston-Salem State Rams take on the Virginai Union Panthers.
At 8pm ET on TNT, it’s All-Star Saturday Night. In the Skills Challenge, Team Pacers (Mathurin, guard Tyrese Haliburton, & center Myles Turner) will try to make it 3 in the row for home teams, but Team Top Pick (Wembanyama, Banchero, & Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards) and Team All-Stars ([Toronto Raptors forward] Scottie Barnes, [Philadelphia 76ers guard] Tyrese Maxey, & [Atlanta Hawks guard] Trae Young) will try to spoil the homecoming.
In the 3-point contest, (Milwaukee Bucks guard) Damian Lillard will try to become the 8th players to win multiple contests & the 7th to win back-to-back contests. To do that he will have to oulast (his teammate, Bucks guard) Malik Beasley, (2022 winner, Minnesota Timberwolves forward/center) Karl-Anthony Towns, Young, (Cleveland Cavaliers guard) Donovan Mitchell, (New York Knicks guard) Jalen Brunson, (Utah Jazz forward) Lauri Markkanen, & Haliburton.
To add more 3-point shooting, there will be 1-on-1 contest between (Golden State Warriors guard & 4-time NBA Champion) Stephen Curry & (New York Liberty guard) Sabrina Ionescu. Curry is the NBA’s all-time leader in 3-point shots & he’s a 2-time winner of the NBA 3-point contest. Ionescu set a single-season WNBA record foe 3-point shots, last season. Her performance in the finals of last year’s WNBA 3-point shootout exploded all over social media. If Curry & Ionescu are dialed in, this could be the 3-point contest that shuts down social media.
Finally, the slam dunk contest will feature (Osceola Magic guard) Mac McClung trying to be the 6th multi-time winner & 5th back-to-back champion. He’ll have to outdo (Boston Celtics guard/forward) Jaylen Brown, (Miami Heat guard/forward) Jaime Jaquez Jr., & (Knicks forward) Jacob Toppin. After the show McClung put on last season, Brown, Jaquez, & Toppin better have some incredible dunks, if they want to dethrone McClung. If they don’t & McClung somehow manages to have even better dunks in this year’s competition, Indy could be in for an 1-man show.
Sunday at 1:30 on NBA TV, it’s the G League Up Next Game from the Indiana Convention Center. See Team Giraffe Stars vs. Team Ball is Life, then Team EYL vs. Team Strictly. The winners will compete against each other in the finals.
Last, but not least, at 8pm ET on TNT, it’s the 2024 NBA All-Star Game from Gainbridge Fieldhouse. See (Bucks forward/center) Giannis Antetokuonmpo lead the eastern conference all-stars against (Los Angeles Lakers forward) LeBron James & the western conference all-stars.
