Despite Changes, Dunk Contest Still Leaves Viewers Cold

When the NBA released the changes to the Dunk Contest, fans (including myself) were optimistic. But after the contest, plenty of angry viewers took to social media websites to vent their frustrations.

So, what happened ?

Well first, let's look at the dunkers. 2014 was the first dunk contest that had three All-Stars in it since 1988. Okay, they weren't quite Michael Jordan, Dominique Wilkins and Clyde Drexler, but it makes a change from unknown players, and "up and coming" prospects. The only player I'd have a bit of a problem with would be Damian Lillard, but he proved me wrong with his battle round dunk (more on that later). 

The format was changed this year, after most people felt that the Dunk Contest should be declared "dead" after last year's disappointment. For the first time ever, there would be a team round, where the 3 dunkers from each conference had 90 seconds to throw as many dunks down, as they could. I had high hopes for this round. I thought it would be a non-stop barrage of amazing dunks, and the energy would be sky-high.

An All-Star squad, but not an All-Star competition. Nick Cannon failed to keep the crowd involved

However, the audience seemed uninterested. The atmosphere was flat. This was probably because of two things.

1) There were too many missed dunks. But this can be forgiven because we're all human.
2) The dunks weren't very good. There were a couple of highlights (the 3 man alley oop from the East wasn't bad) but overall there wasn't anything that could go down as a "great".

Never mind, surely the battle round would save the day. This was the best dunkers in the league, getting head to head, mano a mano. Again, there were high hopes, but it let spectators down.

Terrence Ross' dunk was mediocre, Harrison Barnes' was boring, and I expected more from Paul George after seeing what he could do in-game. Admittedly, Ben McLemore over Shaq was impressed, but the whole build up was very cheesy. John Wall's double pump reverse over G-Man was the highlight of the night, and he deserved the "Dunker of the Night" accolade.

To be honest, the battle round also fell flat, as I don't think one dunk each was enough to really allow us a chance to see what these guys are capable of. Maybe if it were a best of 3 format for each "battle" then fans would have got more into it.

Although I admire Adam Silver and the NBA for trying to change the format (especially so soon into Silver's leadership), they need to go back to the drawing board if they want to keep the fans involved in years to come.

Even John Wall's impressive dunk wasn't enough to save the Dunk Contest from being considered one of the poorest in recent year

All-Star Predictions

Apologies for not posting yesterday, I'm currently working on a season review so far and it's taking a long time to prepare. Whilst I'm writing that, I thought I'd do a quick post choosing and explaining my picks for the All-Star Weekend events.

All-Star Game: West - Why? Because just look at the squads. The starting line-ups may be evenly matched - even with the East starting LeBron at centre - but the depth the West have in their squad is incomparable. I mean, you're looking at Tony Parker being a 5th or 6th choice guard. The East may storm into a lead at the start of the game, thanks to LeBron, PG24 and Melo, but they will struggle when substitutions are made.


All-Star Game MVP: Kevin Durant - LeBron will probably have a comparable, or even better, game than Durant, but the West winning the game will help elevate the Durantula into the minds of voters. A dark horse in this could be Blake Griffin. A mix of his high-flying antics and his developing ability as an all-round player could win him the award.

3 Point Shootout: Stephen Curry- They don't call him a splash brother for nothing. Curry is having a great time shooting the 3-ball and I don't expect that to stop in the shootout. He is .409 from behind the line, not the highest in the competition, but he's still my favourite to win. Arron Afflalo and former winner, Kevin Love, provide serious opposition.

Dunk Contest: East - The Dunk Contest will this year, go to a conference rather than an individual player (there is a Dunker of the night accolade, see below). I think the East will be the victorious side. Paul George is throwing down 360s in-game, meanwhile Terrence Ross is rumoured to be working with YouTube sensations, The Flight Brothers, to do something never seen in a Dunk Contest before.

"Dunker of the Night" - Paul George - As I mentioned before, he is doing crazy stuff in-game, so I can't even imagine what he'll do during the Dunk Contest. Terrence Ross is also a contender, and in the West, Harrison Barnes is probably considered the underdog.

Rising Stars Challenge: Team Hill -  #TeamHill all the way. Looking down the roster, it's a tough call to split them. But, I think that the experience that Team Hill has - all but one of the roster is a sophomore - will elevate them above the Webber Team, mainly made up of rookies.

Rising Stars MVP: - Anthony Davis - He is the "hometown hero" after all. The centre has impressed all season and he was the first pick for Chris Webber. In the All-Star Game, I know I predicted the MVP to be on the winning side, but I'm expecting Davis to have a big game in front of his home fans.

Skills Challenge: Goran Dragic and Reggie Jackson - Dragic has been fantastic this season, and must have been close to gaining a spot on the All-Star roster (he should have been in it if you ask me). Jackson has also been good, making himself an apt replacement for the injured Russell Westbrook. I think they'll face off against MCW and Oladipo in the final, my two favourite rookies this season. It will be interesting to see how Giannis Anteto... Antetu... (yeah, you know who I mean) will do, considering he is listed as a Power Forward

So, there are my predictions. I just realised, when reading it back, that I haven't picked Damian Lillard to win anything, despite being the first man to compete in all five All-Star Weekend events. Oh well Damian... Better luck next time.

Three Point Shootout Is A Certain Swish In My Book

The 8 contestants for this year’s Three Point Shootout have been released and this could be the best line-up we’ve seen in years. In addition to last year’s champion Kyrie Irving (Cleveland Cavaliers) the East includes Arron Affalo (Orlando Magic) gets his spot in the All-Star Weekend after his possible snub for the All-Star Game (discuss amongst yourselves). Bradley Beal (Washington Wizards) and “unworthy all-star” (another discussion point) Joe Johnson (Brooklyn Nets) complete the conference's shooters.

In the West, Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors) makes his 3rd appearance in the competition where as Marco Belinelli (San Antonio Spurs) makes his debut. One of my favourite players in the league, Kevin Love (Minnesota Timberwolves), hopes to win back his crown he gained in 2011. Damian Lillard fills out the cast, and his packed All-Star Weekend.

Personally, I’ve been left cold by the Three Point Shootout in recent years. No disrespect to previous contenders such as Antony Morrow and Steve Novak, but I struggle to get excited by 3rd or 4th choice guards. This year, there are 5 All-Stars competing, and with the average 3pt FG% being 40%, it looks like it could be a cracker.

Some fans have been complaining that the All-Star Weekend has been lacking the past few years, and the NBA has replied with some changes. Usually, the last ball of each rack is the money ball, worth two points. However, this year, there will be a rack of money balls, placed wherever the contestant choose. This, to me, is an interesting change and could be a pivotal factor in deciding the result.

Kyrie Irving retaining his title is looking like a forever decreasing possibilty. Not only has he been drawn with possibly the best group in a long time, he is also having his worst season ever whilst shooting the three ball. Arron Affalo could be a dark horse in this competition, and Kevin Love has a very good chance as well. However, my pick would be Steph Curry, just because he has looking unstoppable from downtown at some points this season.

 
But, whoever the winner, this could be the highlight of the weekend.

Steph Curry is the hot favourite to walk away with the title

Views on the Dunk Contest

So, the All-Star Weekend participants have been announced. The Dunk Contest will consist of, for the East, reigning champion Terrence Ross (Toronto Raptors), fan favourite Paul George (Indiana Pacers), John Wall (Washington Wizards), and for the West, Damien Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers), rookie Ben McLemore (Sacramento Kings) and Harrison Barnes (Golden State Warriors).

So, still no LeBron James, despite Magic Johnson's offer of $1 million back in March of last year, but I still think the line up looks pretty strong. Better than last year's anyhow. Don't get me wrong, I love Kenneth Faried and Eric Bledsoe, but they seemed to lack that pizzazz (yup, that's a word) that has made the Dunk Contest a favourite in the NBA calendar. The lack of big names last year also didn't help popularity with the fans, but with 3 big stars in George, Lillard and Wall, surely the fans can't complain ?

Oh, and did I mention they've changed the format ? There will be no more dunk champions... Actually, that's a little dramatic, but for the first time this year, a conference will win rather an individual. Personally, I think this is a poor idea, and it needs to reversed pretty soon. What was wrong with 6 individuals dunking for themselves and then 1 winning at the end ?

"Who's gonna win ?", you may ask. Well, in my opinion, I feel that it will be the Eastern Conference because of two words... Paul George. He's already competed in the Dunk Contest in 2012 where he impressed fans with his dunk over Roy Hibbert (who stands at a mere 7 foot 2), and since then George has elevated (no pun intended) to the heights of the NBA.

You can't ignore the threat of the West though. Damien Lillard has thrown down two massive dunks in-game recently, and McLemore and Barnes have provided plenty of highlights in their shorts professional careers.

Paul George of the Indiana Pacers will hope to help the Eastern Conference towards victory