Dan Zalewski

Associate Sports Editor

The NBA All-Star break is both an amazing and horrible week for the fans of the NBA. On one hand, the All-Star break showcases the best that the NBA has to offer. On the other hand, the All-Star break is just that, a break! It is a stop to the regular season, an entire week without the dominate forces of the Golden State Warriors, San Antonio Spurs and Cleveland Cavaliers.

No matter how you view the week, it gives a lot of insight into how the NBA looks as a whole and from it there are a few lessons we learn, like….

1. It’s still the Splash Brothers. Klay Thompson put up a monstrous performance to stop his teammate and fellow Splash Brother, Steph Curry, from claiming a back to back set of three-point championships. Thompson has been put in a back seat in the public eye as injuries in combination with the historic season of Steph Curry and the rising power of Draymond Green have moved Thompson out of the spotlight. Despite all the setbacks, Thompson is still putting up 21 points per game. Sure, it’s nearly ten less than Curry’s stellar performance, but it’s still the second best on the team by a fair margin. Don’t forget about Thompson later in the season.
2. OMG, did you hear that Kobe Bryant is retiring? Yes, one of the greatest players to ever step foot on an NBA court is retiring, and if you didn’t know that going into the All-Star game then you know now. The 18-time All-Star (and four time MVP) was honored before the game with video after video of his accomplishments and praise for his talents. Also having Magic Johnson as the celebration’s MC isn’t bad either. Long story short, the Kobe parade isn’t going to end until well into the preseason of next year, if not longer.
3. One player doesn’t make the team. Meaning, just because a player has good skills doesn’t mean that it’s enough for the entire team to be competitive. Of the eight players that made it to the skills challenge quarterfinals, only two of them came from a team with a .500 record or better. The winner, Karl-Anthony Towns, currently plays for the Minnesota Timberwolves who have a 17-37 record. The results simply remind us of a classic old adage, “There is no I in team”.
4. There is hope for the 76ers! I know what you’re thinking… but there weren’t any 76ers on the All-Star team. That is true, but there were two players on the Rising Stars team. Both Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor represented the Philadelphian team. No matter the outcome of the season and whether or not the 76ers get the first overall pick, there is a bright future ahead for the squad. For the sake of their fans, let’s hope it’s worth it.

 

Now that the All-Star break is behind us let’s get back to the regular season. Also, no. Kobe Bryant shouldn’t have gotten the MVP by default. He would not want to win one that way.