A Starry, Starry Weekend

by Jinno Rufino

From meeting this season’s predicted MVP to witnessing how both teams worked hard for the sought-after title (not to mention, one year’s worth of bragging rights), the 2011 NBA All-Star Weekend last February was everything a basketball fan could have ever wished for

A kid in a candy store, that’s what it felt like for a hoop junkie like me when I flew to Los Angeles in February to cover the NBA All-Star Weekend. NBA’s mid-season classic happened during the weekend in between the Grammy Awards and the Oscars, in what turned out to be a busy month in the City of Angels. Despite all the musical acts and films coming together for their respective shindigs, it seemed as if the town had never been this focused on the star-studded basketball affair in a long time. This was evident upon our arrival in LAX. NBA banners greeted us everywhere, from the pillars to the street lamps—pictures of Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Lebron James, and other basketball stars covered the streets of L.A.

Friday

The first day was a busy one. We headed down to Jam Session, which was being held next door to Staples Center at the L.A. Convention Center, to catch the practice of the Rookies and Sophomores who played their own exhibition game as well. It quickly dawned on me how many talented young players the NBA has now. The league is really stacked with talent perhaps more than it ever has been in its history. This could easily be a preview of a future All-Star Game with the likes of John Wall, Steph Curry, Dejuan Blair, Wesley Matthews and James Harden, to name a few, strutting their stuff on the hard-court. Not to mention Blake Griffin who missed the practice due to a packed schedule.

After the practice, we made our way to the J.W. Marriott Hotel for the media availability with the big boys, the A-listers of the NBA, if you will. As usual, the world media was hounding the big names, and so I decided to start with the younger guys, the cats who are about to become headliners but aren’t quite there yet. It’s like approaching Bradley Cooper and Adrian Grenier first before Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. Let’s go over them one by one:

1. Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder

The first thing I asked Westbrook was what it was like to be back in Los Angeles (having been born there and attending UCLA along with Minnesota Timberwolves’s Kevin Love) playing in his first All-Star Game with his good buddy Kevin. “We talked about it in college. To see it happening is exciting. Being around all these guys is just awesome. I will remember this for the rest of my life,” said the 22-year-old point guard. On why everyone who was part of the USA Team that played in the World Basketball Championship in Turkey over the summer seems to be having career games lately: “I think the exposure we got over there, plus the training we got with coach K, and the confidence we gained really helped us this year.”

2. Kevin Love, Minnesota Timberwolves

Love was a late addition to the team after Yao Ming begged off due to injury. When asked about his first reaction after finding out about making the All-Star team, he answered, “Better late than never. It’s truly an honor to be part of this. I can’t tell you how special it is and being here with Westbrook makes it that much sweeter.” It’s truly remarkable how important it is to these young guys to attend their very first All-Star Game. To them, it’s an affirmation of being a legitimate NBA player, as if to say that one has finally earned the right to being part of the league through fans and critics who have noticed your game.

3. Deron Williams, Utah Jazz

Williams was another important guy I felt needed to be interviewed at that time. He had been taking a lot of heat prior to the weekend because people believed he was the reason long time Jazz coach Jerry Sloan surprisingly quit after 23 long years. As I approached his table, I noticed the look on his face, which led me to assume that he’d been grilled about Sloan repeatedly by the press. I decided to go another direction and asked what he thought was the reason why we didn’t see staple point guards like Steve Nash, Jason Kidd, Chauncey Billups, and Tony Parker this year. “Well those guys are getting a little bit older. Maybe it’s kind of like a changing of the guard kind of thing,” he said with a little smile and perhaps a sigh of relief it wasn’t another Sloan question.

4. Rajon Rondo, Boston Celtics

After making my way through the other All-Star regulars, such as Dirk Nowitzki, Tim Duncan, Pau Gasol, all representing the West, (believe it or not, I actually skipped Kobe Bryant, since I have had the privilege to interview him many times before) it was time to meet the beasts of the East. First up, was Celtic’s star point guard Rajon Rondo. I asked him what it meant to have five Celtics, including their coach Doc Rivers, representing the East, he replied, “It’s special. It shows how great the team has been playing. Having these guys here will make the game easier since we know each other well.” I asked him who his favorites are for the Three-Point Shootout contest (one of the side events of the weekend), to which the loyal Celtic answered, “I think both Ray and Paul will win it,” referring to his Celtic teammates Ray Allen and Paul Pierce. In the end, Miami Heat’s James Jones grabbed the title away from last year’s defending champ Pierce.

5. Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls

The one guy from the East that I really wanted to talk to was Derrick Rose. I asked him what his favorite memory was of previous All-Star weekends. He looked at me and said, “I actually never really watched the festivities on television. I only really caught the highlights on ESPN or something, but not the whole thing.” One of the things he did say he remembered was Vince Carter’s famous Slam Dunk title, when Carter dunked and hung by his elbow to show how high up he got. I went on to ask Derrick what the biggest difference is between this All-Star weekend and his first, and he said, “That’s easy. It’s the attention I’m getting. Last time, not many people gathered around me. Now seems like everyone wants to come talk to me.” Well why not? He has only just become the favorite contender for the Most Valuable Player award this season, having been able to transform his team into a real contender for the coveted trophy.

Other fun tidbits I got from other players include Miami Heat’s Chris Bosh, who revealed that in his cameo in Entourage, alternate endings were shot, depending on which team he wound up in. Meanwhile, Joe Johnson of the Atlanta Hawks admitted to enjoying not getting as much attention as the other guys since that’s more his personality anyway.

Saturday

The next day, we got to witness both teams practice at the same time. It was kind of funny seeing Carmelo Anthony who was still with the West, as the trade had not happened yet, passing the ball to Amare Stoudamire who was playing for the East, as they ran through drills together. Looking at their facial expressions, it was almost as if they knew something was going to happen, but couldn’t say anything about it. After the practice, I got the chance to chat with Dwyane Wade. I asked him to assess what coach Erik Spoelstra had done with the Heat, and he said, “We will continue to grow. Nothing is perfect. Sometimes we will do well together, sometimes we wont, but he’s doing the best he can, and we’ve been doing all right. Hopefully, it continues.” I went on to present him with a Gatorade bottle with his picture on it, which is available only in the Philippines. He looked at it and smiled, saying that it’s an old picture. He went on to greet his Filipino fans and thanked everyone in the country who backed coach Spo and the Miami Heat. Yeah, I know I didn’t tell him I was a Laker fan.

Published in the April 2011 issue of UNO Magazine