Can NBA fix All-Star Weekend?

The NBA All-Star Weekend was once again a showcase of everything that’s both good and bad about the league and its stars. The record crowd at Cowboys Stadium overshadowed the players, who initially had to overcome problems with depth perception and lines of sight, but eventually put on a good show. If you were a fan of the West All-Stars, you had your disappointments, as the East proved that its leading record is no longer just a by-product of the Boston Celtics’ dominance four decades or so ago.

But there is a certain level of fan fatigue, not just with the game itself, but more so with the side events. A decade ago, the NBA feebly tried to eliminate the Slam Dunk contest altogether, instead replacing it with the NBA 2Ball contest. Great idea, wrong placement. As an added attraction, it carried a certain appeal to the youth (especially those who can’t dunk). But it faded within a couple of years.

Now, the NBA is faced with the problem again of people having seen many of the dunks before. There is only so much you can do, and Nate Robinson actually giving up a chance for a fourth title mirrors the fatigue among the players.

What made the dunk contest such a big hit before? First, the stars came to play. Julius Erving, Michael Jordan, Dominique Wilkins (who was embarrassed by both Jordan and Spud Webb), Vince Carter, they all did it for the fans. This year, LeBron James decided not to join after making a solid promise to enter at last year’s event. Second, the dunks were fresh. Now, people have seen Carter’s between-the-legs pass before the dunk, Erving’s free-throw line takeoff, and some of Spuds’ elevation from other little fellas.

I would suggest that they add more tools to the game, like dunking more than one ball, or dunking the same ball twice (it’s been done), raising the goal, and maybe adding more participants. I don’t really enjoy having a lot of props or “assistants” unless you’re going to jump over them (remember Alex Coles doing an aerial split when he jammed one over five people in the PBA?). More creativity is needed. Period.

The Skills Challenge is okay for now, but it would be nice to add a relay event and get team participation. They might want to consider doing what Magic Johnson did a while back, and have a three-on-three game with retired players and celebrities on a shorter version of a full court. Or how about having fans join the skills challenge and dunk contest? Three-point shootout winner Paul Pierce has lost a record-breaking three-point shootout to an ordinary Joe before, and some other NBA players have been shown up outside of NBA courts.

The centerpiece event itself can still do with a little bit of tinkering. First of all, why don’t they allow the same coaches in consecutive years? If you ask me, that’s punishing success and rewarding mediocrity. So what if the same coaches end up in first place by All-Star break? They earned it. It’s like telling Miss Universe she can’t show up even if she’s healthy, and letting her runner-up go instead. There’s simply no logical reason for it, other than the coaches might want a rest. When you think about it, some coaches don’t take the game seriously, anyway, or bench certain players for unexplained reasons. Why does it seem that these events were a lot less political back in the 1980’s?

Speaking of rest, there should be sanctions against players who don’t participate even if they’re voted. It’s a rare honor as it is to be voted in. Perhaps they should expand the lineups to include 15 players on each squad. That way, more teams could be represented, and more players could make it. It would shield the stars who only want to show up, and give other players a chance to shine and play hard. I say the opportunity should go to those who really want it.

The game has also had a share of eyesores, from the alleged “freezing out” of Michael Jordan in the 1980’s, to Kobe Bryant trying to dunk his own teammates’ jump shots earlier in his career, and so on. There should be another motive for playing, and playing well.

On top of playing the game itself, there should be additional motivation for the players. I remember watching a game between our legislators and members of the media, and every point scored would be multiplied by a certain number, and that amount would be donated to charity. Needless to say, even if there was no defense (as there usually is in media events like the All-Star Game) everyone was in a mad rush to score and increase the pot. Perhaps the winning team gets to put its name on the check of a big donation. That might make the game more exciting and get the players to work together.

The game has remained the same, and the fans have seen many of the same highlights. What else can be done to spice up the league’s mid-year celebration?

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In celebraton of its sequicentennial, the Ateneo de Manila University is staging “Walang Sugat”, a sarsuwela by Severino Reyes and Fulgencio Tolentino, at the Henry Lee Irwin Theater on campus this coming week. The gala will be held tonight at 8 p.m. Sponsored by SMART Infinity, the project is a collaborative project of the Ateneo Loyola Schools, Tanghalang Ateneo and other school organizations for the benefit of the 500@150 Scholarship program.