Tag: 2020 All-Star Game

Steve Kerr on Devin Booker’s All-Star Game snub: ‘I voted for him’

Steve Kerr said he voted for Devin Booker to make the 2020 NBA All-Star game and was disappointed when the Suns’ guard didn’t get the nod .

For the first time in years, the Golden State Warriors do not have a member of their team participating in the NBA All-Star Game. While the 2019-20 edition of the Warriors may not have a player competing at an All-Star level, the Phoenix Suns have a different argument.

Joining the Warriors on the outside of All-Star weekend is Suns’ shooting guard, Devin Booker. The Kentucky Wildcat product is averaging 26.4 points, 6.3 assists and 4.2 rebounds per game. Booker is shooting a career-best 49.9 % from the field, adding 36.2 % from beyond the arc.

Booker has been a centerpiece for the Suns’ steady improvement, leading them to 21 wins before the All-Star break. Over the past four seasons, Phoenix has had win totals of 19, 21, 24 and 23 for the entire year.

However, Booker’s efficient season wasn’t enough to get a nod to the 2020 All-Star game in Chicago.

The Golden State Warriors’ head coach, Steve Kerr was an advocate to get Booker into the game and was disappointed when the Suns’ shooting guard didn’t get a bid from the Western Conference. Before Golden State tipped off against Booker and the Suns, Kerr told reporters in Phoenix that he voted for Booker to get into the game.

I agree with them on the All-Star part — I voted for him, and I’m not just saying that cause we’re playing against them tonight — I’m not saying that to butter him up. I think he’s had an All-Star year; I think he’s been fantastic — the efficiency, the Suns’ overall improvement — I think he’s played a huge role in it, and I was disappointed for him. I don’t know him, but just watching him — he’s an All-Star player. It happens every year though — you get a couple of guys left out, and you think, ‘well, they deserved it’ and then you look at the team and go, ‘everybody on the team pretty much deserved it too’— so it’s never an easy math equation.

Although their coach is a fan of Booker’s game, it’ll be Golden State’s final challenge before the All-Star break to slow him down. Damion Lee, Jordan Poole and Ky Bowman will be tasked with containing Booker on his All-Star revenge tour.

A quick stop in Phoenix will be the Warriors’ final chance to end their current three-game losing streak before the All-Star break.

Report: Brandon Ingram questionable Thursday vs. Thunder

Ingram has missed the last two games with a right ankle sprain. He’s averaging a career-best 24.9 points in his first year for New Orleans.

New Orleans’ All-Star power forward, Brandon Ingram, is questionable to play in Thursday night’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

According to the team’s injury report, Ingram is still nursing a sprained right ankle. He also sat out the Pelicans’ last two games, wins over the Portland Trail Blazers and the Indiana Pacers, with the injury.

In his first year in the Big Easy, Ingram has had a breakout season. It’s also earned him his first All-Star nod. His numbers are up across the board including point production (24.9 points per game), rebounds (6.4 per game), and assists (4.2 per game).

He’s also improved his 3-point and free-throw percentage, hitting 40% of his shots from beyond the arc, which is up seven percent from last year, and 86.2% from the charity stripe, an increase of almost 20%.

There has been no additional word about whether or not the injury will prevent Ingram from participating in the All-Star Game on Feb. 16.

For the Thunder, rookie Darius Bazley remains out with a bone bruise in his right knee. As of this writing, everyone else is available.

Thursday night’s game between Oklahoma City and the Pelicans is the last game for both teams prior to All-Star Weekend. Tip-off inside the Smoothie King Center is at 7 p.m. CT.

James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Chris Paul to share All-Star team

Houston’s current All-Star backcourt of James Harden and Russell Westbrook are on Team LeBron, along with former Rockets guard Chris Paul.

The current Houston backcourt and one former Rockets point guard will all play together on the same team at the 2020 NBA All-Star Game.

James Harden, Russell Westbrook, and Chris Paul were all drafted by LeBron James to play on “Team LeBron” at the upcoming game, which takes place on Sunday, Feb. 16 in Chicago.

Harden will start the game, while Westbrook and Paul are each reserves.

The teams were drafted by James and Giannis Antetokounmpo, who were deemed “team captains” for having the most fan votes in the Western Conference and Eastern Conference, respectively.

Antetokounmpo took a lighthearted jab at Harden when drafting Boston’s Kemba Walker ahead of him, saying he wants someone “that’s going to pass the ball.” Antetokounmpo and Harden finished first and second, respectively, in last season’s MVP voting.

That assertion isn’t supported by data, however, since Harden ranks No. 9 in the NBA in assists at 7.3 per game, while Walker is No. 33 at 5.0.

Led by two former MVPs, Harden and Westbrook have directed the Rockets (32-18) to the West’s fourth-best record entering Thursday.

Now 30 years old, Harden leads the NBA in scoring yet again at 35.8 points per game, along with 7.3 assists and 6.5 rebounds.

Meanwhile, Westbrook is in the NBA’s top 10 in points (26.4) and assists (7.4) per game, and he’s also near the league’s best among guards at 8.0 rebounds per game. It’s the ninth career All-Star berth for the 31-year-old Westbrook, and the eighth for Harden.

In Oklahoma City, Paul has led the Thunder (31-20) to a surprising No. 6 mark in the West standings, with averages of 17.0 points, 6.6 assists, and 5.0 rebounds per game. It’s the 10th All-Star berth of the 34-year-old’s career, and his first since 2016.

Paul was traded by the Rockets to Oklahoma City last offseason in the deal that brought Westbrook to Houston.

All three guards are future Hall of Famers whose career legacies are tied to at least one other member of the trio, making it a unique opportunity for them to all take the court together. The All-Star Game tips off at 7 p.m. Central time on Sunday, Feb. 16 in Chicago.

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Celtics’ Jayson Tatum a favorite to repeat as Skills Challenge champ

Online sportsbooks consider Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum a favorite to repeat as Skills Challenge champion.

Boston Celtics All-Star forward Jayson Tatum is among the favorites to win the 2020 NBA All-Star Skills Challenge.

Popular online sportsbook Bet Online AG gives the Duke product 6-to-1 odds on repeating as victor in the event, the Missouri native also having won last season’s All-Star Skills Challenge.

With The Athletic’s Shams Charania reporting veteran Detroit Pistons point guard Derrick Rose planning on dropping out of the Skills Challenge, only the the Brooklyn Nets’ Spencer Dinwiddie has better odds to win it all at 3-to-1.

The Indiana Pacers’ Domantas Sabonis also has 6-to-1 odds in his favor, and the Milwaukee Bucks’ Khris Middleton and Los Angeles Clippers Patrick Beverley each have 7-to-1 odds to win the event.

The online sportsbook lists the Toronto Raptors’ Pascal Siakam and Miami Heat’s Bam Adebayo as longshots with 10-to-1 and 12-to-1 odds respectively, making Tatum among the best bets (and worst payouts) to take home this season’s Skills Challenge hardware.

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Chris Paul responsible for idea behind new All-Star Game format

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver told NBCSports Chicago that Paul called him with the idea to tweak the format last year.

Whether you love or hate the changes that the NBA is making to the All-Star Game this year, you have Chris Paul to thank for it.

Paul, who was just voted to the 10th All-Star Game of his career, apparently was looking for a way to freshen things up.

As NBA Commissioner Adam Silver told K.C. Johnson of NBCSports Chicago, it was Paul who pitched the idea of changing the format this year.

The genesis of this latest tweak comes directly from Chris Paul, who called me last summer and said, ‘I’m a big fan of The Basketball Tournament. And are you familiar with the so-called Elam endings?’ And I said I was. I’ve watched it a few times. I said, ‘It’s fascinating to me.’

The Basketball Tournament was founded in 2014 and is a 5-on-5 tournament in which the winning team takes home $2 million. The ‘Elam ending’ Paul referred to was instituted by the TBT in 2018 as a way to “address deliberate fouling and stalling” that often happens in late-game situations.

When the NBA announced the changes on Jan. 30, there were a lot of people (this writer included) who were somewhat confused by the new format. Silver said the confusion was something that he anticipated.

I think in some cases it’s confusing to some fans. But Chris said, ‘I think it’s terrific. I think we should look at changing the format.’ I said, ‘If that’s something you’re serious about, why don’t you talk to other members of your executive committee — he’s the president of the players association — and other players whose views you respect and I’ll talk to my colleagues at the league office and members of our competition committee. And what we heard back from everyone was it sounds really intriguing. Let’s try something new.

What better place to try something new than the All-Star Game?

This year, instead of a standard four-quarter game, both teams will compete to win each of the first three quarters, with the score being reset to 0-0 after each 12-minute period.

The winner must be the first to reach a target score, which will be determined by the total points the team in the lead scored in the first three quarters combined, plus 24.

The addition of the 24 points is part of the league’s tribute to late Lakers star Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash along with his daughter, Gianna, and seven other victims on Jan. 26.

The All-Star Game will be played on Sunday, Feb. 16. Tip-off is at 7 p.m. CT and the game will be broadcast on TNT.

The NBA’s All-Star teams will wear Kobe and Gianna Bryant’s numbers

This is a great move by the NBA.

All week, the entire basketball world has been all about honoring Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna Bryant, after their tragic passing.

That’s going to continue at the NBA’s All-Star game. The league introduced one initiative yesterday when they announced the game’s new format will have an Elam Ending, which includes a nod to Bryant’s final NBA number, 24.

Not only will Bryant’s number determine the final score, but the two teams that will face each other in the game are going to wear Kobe’s number 24 and Gianna’s number 2 in the actual All-Star game.

Team LeBron is suiting up in Gianna’s No. 2 and Team Giannis is wearing Kobe’s No. 24.

I don’t know about the whole Elam Ending thing — I’m still doing the math on that one a day later. But this latest decision is perfect.

Fans were suggesting that the league have the teams wear 8 and 24 to honor Kobe, but the league did one better by honoring Gianna with number 2.

This is an absolute slam dunk. Good on the league for figuring it out.

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Chris Paul headed to 10th All-Star Game

Paul was named an All-Star reserve, as voted on by league coaches. He went to nine-straight All-Star Games and was the MVP in 2012-13.

Chris Paul is going to another All-Star Game.

Initially reported by Chris Haynes of Yahoo! Sports, Paul was selected as one of the reserves as voted on by the league’s coaches.

The NBA made it official, announcing the news just after 6 p.m. CT.

It is the 10th All-Star selection for Paul, his first since the 2015-16 season when he represented the West as a member of the Los Angeles Clippers.

Paul was the All-Star Game MVP in 2012-13.

Per Shams Charania of The Athletic, also rounding out the reserves for the West are Damian Lillard, Donovan Mitchell, Nikola Jokic, Rudy Gobert, Brandon Ingram, and former Thunder guard, Russell Westbrook.

For the East, Jimmy Butler, Kyle Lowry, Ben Simmons, Khris Middleton, Jayson Tatum, Bam Adebayo, as well as former Thunder center, Domas Sabonis, make up the reserves.

The NBA announced some drastic changes to the format of the All-Star Game, including plans to incorporate a tribute to the late Kobe Bryant, on Thursday afternoon.

Instead of a standard four-quarter game, both teams will compete to win each of the first three quarters, with the score being reset to 0-0 after each 12-minute period.

The fourth quarter will be untimed.

As explained by ESPN, “the team that wins the All-Star Game will be the first to reach a target score, determined by the total points the team in the lead scored in the first three quarters combined — plus 24, the obvious nod to Bryant.”

According to the NBA’s president for league operations, Byron Spruell, there were already discussions in place to change the format when Sunday’s tragedy occurred.

“We spent a lot of time considering the right target number to use for the fourth quarter. Through the events of this week it became clear to us that the only appropriate number for this season’s All-Star game is 24.”

Multiple tributes to Bryant, his daughter Gianna, and the seven other victims in the helicopter crash are expected to take place throughout All-Star weekend.

The 2020 All-Star Game will take place on Sunday, Feb. 16. Tip-off is at 7 p.m. CT on TNT.

Russell Westbrook joins James Harden with 2020 All-Star selection

The ninth All-Star nod of Westbrook’s career gives the Houston Rockets two All-Star players for the first time since the 2013-14 season.

As determined by votes from NBA coaches, Houston Rockets guard Russell Westbrook is among the seven Western Conference players selected as reserves for the 2020 NBA All-Star Game.

It’s the ninth All-Star berth of his storied career. Now in his first season away from Oklahoma City, the 2020 game will be the first of those nine appearances for Westbrook to represent another NBA team.

Westbrook will be joined at the All-Star Game by his Houston backcourt co-star, James Harden, who was named last week as a starter. It’s the first time since the 2013-14 season (Dwight Howard) that Harden has had an All-Star for that season as a teammate with the Rockets.

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For the 2019-20 season to date, Westbrook is averaging 26.3 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 7.4 assists per game with the Rockets (29-18). Both his points and assists totals are in the league’s top 10 in those categories.

But Westbrook has been even better in recent weeks. In 21 games since Dec. 7, the former MVP is averaging 30.5 points on 49.8% shooting.

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That 30.5 point average makes Westbrook the NBA’s No. 3 overall scorer since Dec. 7, trailing only Harden and Portland’s Damian Lillard.

Westbrook was the NBA All-Star Game MVP in 2015 and 2016.

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It is unclear whether the 30-year-old Harden and 31-year-old Westbrook will be All-Star Game teammates, since the two rosters won’t be selected until next Thursday, Feb. 6, by team captains LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo. (The captains were determined by the player in each conference who received the most fan votes.)

From there, James and Antetokounmpo will each “draft” a team for the All-Star Game — beginning with four selections apiece from the pool of other starting players, including Harden, and then seven picks each among reserve players, such as Westbrook.

In final fan voting update, Rockets’ James Harden holds All-Star lead

Rockets guard James Harden holds a huge lead for an All-Star Game starting spot, while Russell Westbrook is fifth among West guards.

In the third and final weekly update from the NBA, Houston Rockets star James Harden continues to hold a sizable lead in fan votes to be a backcourt starter in the 2020 NBA All-Star Game.

The 30-year-old Harden has been an All-Star in all seven of his completed seasons with the Rockets, and a starter in five of them.

In Thursday’s update, Harden continues to rank second in fan voting among Western Conference guards, trailing only Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks. Doncic, who hails from Slovenia and brings a significant international voting presence, nearly leads the entire NBA in fan voting.

Harden leads Portland’s Damian Lillard by a commanding total of nearly two million votes for the second starting slot among West guards.

The fan vote accounts for half of the voting that determines All-Star starters. Players make up 25%, as does a panel of media members.

While votes from the latter two groups are not yet known, it’s hard to imagine Harden not in the top two of West guards by many voters (if any). The 2018 MVP is averaging a league-leading 37.2 points per game, which is the highest total of any player in the last 56 years and the most by a guard ever. He’s also in the NBA’s top 10 in assists at 7.5 per game.

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Fellow Rockets guard Russell Westbrook, averaging 24.8 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 7.2 assists per game, is fifth in fan voting among Western Conference guards. However, barring an injury to Doncic or Harden, there doesn’t appear to be a path for the league’s 2017 MVP to start.

However, Westbrook could still make the All-Star Game as a reserve. All 30 NBA coaches are given a ballot with the ability to select three frontcourt players, two backcourt players, and two wild-card picks from each conference. Westbrook has been an All-Star in eight of the last nine seasons, and he was the game’s MVP in 2015 and 2016.

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Besides Harden and Westbrook, no other backcourt or frontcourt player with the Rockets (26-14) is currently in the top 10 of fan voting totals. Fan voting continues through Monday, Jan. 20. From there, the game’s starters will be announced on Jan. 23, and reserves on Jan. 30.

The player in each conference with the most fan votes will be named a team captain and subsequently draft his own roster for the game. At the moment, LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers and Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks are on course for that honor.

The 2020 All-Star Game will be held on Sunday, Feb. 16 at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois.

The NHL uses women’s hockey players for a PR boost. It needs to fund a league instead.

Visibility means nothing without the financial support to sustain it.

For the past few years, the NHL has worked to integrate women’s hockey into one of its marquee events, NHL All-Star Weekend. In 2018, members of the U.S. Olympic women’s hockey team demonstrated drills for the All-Star skills competition. The following year, Team USA star Kendall Coyne-Schofield competed in the fastest skater competition and Brianna Decker aced the passing drill. Both events were met with wide support from the players and the public.

Emboldened by the success of the past two years, the NHL has gone a step further for the 2020 All-Star weekend and added a women’s 3-on-3 scrimmage to the slate. According to the NHL, the event will feature two teams of nine skaters and one goalie, and be made up of American All-Stars and Canadian All-Stars, going head-to-head in a 20 minute game.

For the past few years, the NHL has treated the inclusion of women’s hockey players into All-Star weekend as some kind of social good. It’s a nice, but ultimately meaningless, gesture. There’s one thing the NHL can do to show that it truly cares about the growth of women’s professional hockey, and that is to fully commit to supporting it financially. Everything else, no matter how well-meaning, is nothing but window dressing. Visibility, even on a national stage, means little without institutional support to sustain it.

Over the past two years, the state of professional women’s hockey has deteriorated exponentially and is in a state of crisis.  Due to financial concerns, the CWHL has fallen apart. The NWHL is limping along, with top talent boycotting the league over fair pay and better working conditions. That’s why many top players have instead affiliated with the PWHPA, which acts not as a league but instead sponsors events and games across the U.S. and Canada aimed at increasing opportunities for girls and women in hockey — with the ultimate goal of establishing one sustainable league in the near future.

Yet, in all this time, the NHL has offered limited financial support to both women’s hockey leagues. The NHL has also maintained that as long as the NWHL exists, it won’t step into the women’s hockey arena.

It’s a frustrating and ultimately defeating line in the sand from a league that not only makes billions in revenue, but preaches about wanting to grow the game across all underrepresented demographics.

The real issues with making women’s hockey sustainable will not be solved by intermittent promotion from the NHL.  If the NHL is really interested in making women’s hockey more than a sideshow at its marquee event, it will do more than pay lip service to the idea by investing actual money.  In 2019, the NHL donated a paltry $100K to the NWHL after the collapse of the CWHL.  Of the projected 4.5 billion in revenue the league made in 2018-2019, that’s less than a drop in the bucket.

Women’s hockey has long faced an uphill battle, but with broader financial commitments the NHL could ensure its success. The model for this has already been laid out by the NBA, which put its full financial weight behind establishing the WNBA.  The WNBA still struggles but has made incredible strides since being founded in 1996.  Just earlier this week, the WNBA announced a landmark CBA agreement that raised team salary caps by 30% and almost doubled max salaries (the WNBA remains 50 percent owned by the NBA’s team owners).

The key in all of this has been the NBA doubling down on women’s sports as an investment in the future, even in the face of financial losses. Per the Wall Street Journal, the NBA’s Adam Silver said the WNBA operates at a loss of $10 million a year.

The NHL could decide to invest financially in women’s professional hockey on a significant level, starting small and slowly helping grow the game.  Why it has refused to do so is the real question fans should be asking during the All-Star weekend. The NHL has been lauded for “opening doors” for women at the All-Star game, but what good is it if they’re ushered right back out?

During All-Star weekend, the NHL will tout equality and let some talented women shine on national television. Watching the women play will feel good for a few minutes, but what it won’t fix is institutional inequalities that have plagued women’s sport for decades.  The NHL is in a position to make real change happen, but all it has done so far is nothing more than some slick PR.