No stoppin’ Toppin in dunk contest
Knicks forward easily bests Toscano-Anderson in final round to win All-Star event
Obi Toppin won the slam dunk contest, earning a 47 on his final dunk when he needed to do little more than put the ball in the basket after Juan Toscano-Anderson couldn’t on his previous try.
In a disappointing finish to All-Star Saturday, the four dunkers occasionally left the judging panel of Hall of Famers with expressionless looks on their faces.
Toppin, the New York Knicks forward, beat Golden State’s ToscanoAnderson in the final round to win the event after finishing second as a rookie.
Houston rookie Jalen Green and Orlando guard Cole Anthony failed to advance. Anthony couldn’t make his second dunk and appeared to hurt his thumb banging it against the rim.
3-point contest: The big man was the big winner in the 3-point contest. Minnesota AllStar Karl-Anthony Towns showed off his longrange shooting skills and was a surprising winner of the event, scoring 29 points in his final round. Towns beat Luke Kennard of the Clippers and Atlanta’s Trae Young in the final. Skills challenge: The host Cleveland Cavaliers were the first winners of the revamped Skills Challenge. Rookie Evan Mobley gave his
team a victory by nailing a halfcourt shot on his first attempt, allowing the Cavs to close out the final portion of the contest in 5.5 seconds. Notes: On the court where he burst onto the national scene as a high school phenom, LeBron James lived out a childhood All-Star dream. The skinny 12-year-old kid, who longed to make the short trip from Akron to Cleveland the last time the world’s best basketball players visited Ohio 25 years ago, had a moment as precious as any MVP trophy on Saturday. Back at Wolstein Center, James found himself surrounded by his best friends, the high school teammates, the ones who have been there for every step of his amazing journey. “A remarkable thing,” James said. “It’s pretty cool.” As practice began for Team LeBron, the handpicked squad for his 18th All-Star Game, James left Steph Curry, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic and others behind on the floor so he could be with his teammates for life. He spotted Romeo Travis, now a coach at St. Vincent-St. Mary and Willie McGee, the athletic director at their alma mater. There was Dru Joyce Jr., following his dad’s coaching footsteps as an assistant at Cleveland State and Sian Cotton, coaching football back at St. V., as it’s known, and Frankie Walker Jr. James hugged each of them tightly. He posed for pictures while holding their kids, remarking how some of them had grown since he last saw them. “My guys,” he said later. “I speak to them almost every day. We have that connection and that friendship that’s been going on since we were 9. This is the first time we’ve all spent the All-Star weekend together. So it makes it even more special.” ... NBA Commissioner Adam Silver didn’t like the circumstances that led to the blockbuster Ben Simmons-James Harden trade. He just doesn’t see a way to fix them. Silver noted that players being unhappy with their teams and asking for trades is nothing new. But the commissioner said Saturday that a player taking the stance Simmons did with the Philadelphia 76ers, refusing to play knowing he would be fined, is more complicated. “I don’t have something specific in mind that can prevent a situation like this,” Silver said. “But I think we and the players have a collective common interest in ensuring that contracts are honored.” Silver started his annual All-Star news conference with an upbeat tone, saying people around the league were feeling more at ease as the coronavirus pandemic shows signs of easing and restrictions are lifted. He talked of taking the league back on the road again, for games outside the U.S. and more community-based events around the country. “It’s been a difficult time for so many, but I’m frankly thrilled to be back here in person with so many people,” Silver said. “I would say it’s been a celebratory mood for people in the NBA family.” But he couldn’t hide his disappointment about the circumstances surrounding the deal at the trade deadline that ended with Simmons moving from Philadelphia to Brooklyn, just 13 months after the Nets had acquired Harden from Houston.