The 2011 NBA All-Star Game has come and gone, and what looked like a Western Conference blowout turned out to be quite a close game down the stretch, with the West winning in the end, 148-143. Kobe Bryant led all players with 37 points and 14 rebounds, taking home his fourth All-Star MVP trophy. The game also featured great performances from LeBron James, who led the Eastern Conference comeback and put up the second triple-double (29 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists) in All-Star history, and Kevin Durant, who scored 34 points of his own, including five in the final few minutes to give the West some breathing room.
The game featured several highlights of course, as one might expect when the best basketball players in the world converge on the same court.
Dexter Fishmore of Silver Screen and Roll was in the house at Staples Center all weekend, and gave this report of the game and the weekend:
The West's 148 to 143 victory caps off what by all accounts, Kravitz notwithstanding, has been a very successful weekend for the league and its L.A. hosts. It won't be long before the All-Star Game returns to Staples. The rejuvenation of downtown L.A., including the construction of the L.A. Live and Marriott/Ritz-Carlton complexes that served as home base for ASW activities this year, make Los Angeles pretty much the ideal location for this event. All-Star Weekend is the yearly occasion when the league fully embraces its connections to the worlds of celebrity and pop culture. No city provides a more fitting backdrop.
Steve Perrin of Clips Nation was also covering the event, and gave this summation of LeBron's performance:
LeBron James may have waited a bit too long before caring. He seemed disinterested for the first three quarters (though he still had 15 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists, which is pretty good for 'disinterested'). When he turned it on in the fourth, it may have been too late. He led the East back to within two a couple of times, but they never got a shot at a tying possession, as the West responded with buckets each time the lead shrunk to two.
Sean Keeley of SB Nation offered up this trivia nugget:
It's all about LeBron & Kobe: With his 2011 MVP, Kobe ensured that he or LeBron was named MVP in five of the last six seasons. It's Kobe's fourth overall, LeBron has a measly two.