The 2012 NBA Rookie-Sophmore game is set to tip off tonight at 6:00pm PST in Orlando, and Blake Griffin stands as the lone Los Angeles representative. While the pre-All Star Game festivities are beloved by some and reviled by others, Blake Griffin's exhausting run through the Rising Stars Challenge, the Slam Dunk Contest, and the All-Star Game was quite a treat for LA basketball fans last year. Griffin was the first pick in the draft between GMs Shaq and Charles Barkley.
This year Griffin is slated to star the NBA All-Star game for the West as well as play in the Rookie-Sophomore game, a feat last pulled off by Lebron James in 2005. Making both squads but not starting in the All-Star Game is not as rare, with Griffin pulling it off last year and Derrick Rose the year before.
The rest of the Team Shaq roster is as follows:
Blake Griffin, LA Clippers
Jeremy Lin, NY Knicks
Ricky Rubio, Minnesota Timberwolves
Markieff Morris, Phoenix Suns
Kemba Walker, Charlotte Bobcats
Landry Fields, NY Knicks
Norris Cole, Miami Heat
Brandon Knight, Detroit Pistons
Tristan Thompson, Cleveland Cavaliers
Greg Monroe, Detroit Pistons
And their opponents, Team Chuck:
Kyrie Irving, Cleveland Cavaliers
DeMarcus Cousins, Sacramento Kings
Derrick Williams, Minnesota Timberwolves
Paul George, Indiana Pacers
MarShon Brooks, NJ Nets
John Wall, Washington Wizards
Tiago Splitter, San Antonio Spurs (out with injury)
Evan Turner, Philadelphia 76ers
Gordon Hayward, Utah Jazz
Kawhi Leonard, San Antonio Spurs
Derrick Favors, Utah Jazz