STARS ARE SHINING
All-Star Game has no Bulls, but the city is well-represented in showcase.
All-Star Game may not have any Bulls, but there’s plenty of Chicago to talk about
You know what amuses Charles Barkley? The idea that Zach LaVine should have been an NBA All-Star.
You know why?
“Because he didn’t deserve it,” Barkley said during a free moment Thursday night before TNT’s pregame show from Chicago’s House of Blues.
And why is that?
“Because he didn’t deserve it,” Barkley said flatly.
The top basketball TV analyst working today, Barkley is in town with the rest of TNT’s studio show crew as part of the channel’s All-Star Weekend coverage.
What makes the Hall of Famer the best in the business is his rare blend of insight, humor and the chutzpah to say what few others will.
LaVine and his fans may be sore his AllStar Weekend participation on his home floor was limited to Saturday night’s 3-Point Contest.
But as Barkley sees it, players on losing teams can’t count on being selected for the NBA’s midseason showcase.
LaVine and the Bulls are 19-36, just five games out of the No. 8 slot in the Eastern Conference but also only 5½ games from last place
“I’m not going to lie to you. I’ve been very disappointed in the Bulls,” Barkley said. “I have no idea what they’re doing. I have no idea what has happened to Lauri Markkanen. I thought he was going to be the next big thing, and he has regressed.”
And what of Bulls coach Jim Boylen? “Jim Boylen is a good friend of mine, and I’ll leave it at that,” Barkley said. “Jim Boylen is a good friend of mine, but I don’t know what the Bulls are doing.”
See? Even when Barkley holds back, he doesn’t hold back.
LaVine, of course, isn’t alone in feeling overlooked.
Bradley Beal of the 20-33 Wizards said it was “disrespectful” he wasn’t named an All-Star.
Devin Booker of the 22-33 Suns also voiced complaints over his perceived snub, although he eventually scored a spot in both Sunday’s game and the 3-Point Contest as a fill-in for the Trail Blazers’ Damian Lillard.
“When you’re 5-75, you don’t have the right to feel snubbed,” Barkley said. “Seriously, all the guys that say they got snubbed are on the worst teams in the NBA. You’re not even competitive.
“Like, if your team is pretty good, you’re snubbed. If your team is in last place, you’re not snubbed. You don’t deserve it.”
Barkley is even less impressed with the new All-Star Game format the NBA is trotting out Sunday night on TNT and TBS.
The first three quarters will be scored as separate games with the teams winning money for charity.
Then in the fourth quarter, the overall winner will be the team that reaches a target score determined by the total points the leading team had across the first three quarters, plus — in honor of the late Kobe Bryant — 24 points.
Or something like that.
The fourth quarter will be televised without commercial breaks, which is good because announcer Marv Albert, analysts Reggie Miller and Chris Webber and reporter Allie LaForce might need the time to explain how all of this works.
The whole thing is strange, to say the least.
“It’s a very fine line between strange and stupid,” Barkley said.
Well, on which side of the line does it fall?
“I’m on stupid,” he said.
The whole weekend is just meant to be fun and should be viewed that way.
“All these people come up with these stupid rules to try to make it like … it’s Game 7, life or death,” Barkley said. “No, this is an exhibition. We’re here to have fun. … This is the only break (during the season) these guys get. The best players are here. Hopefully the other guys are resting up.”
Viewers, too, should try to sit back and enjoy it for the spectacle that it is. Winning and losing isn’t necessarily the most important thing.
“Listen,” Barkley said, “these guys all play for different teams. They’re not going to go out and try to kill each other because somebody (will) get hurt and we’ll be like, ‘Oh, man, they shouldn’t have been playing that hard.’
“Out of all the sports, we have far and away the best (All-Star) weekend. On Friday night, we show the young stars, which is great for the fans. On Saturday night, which is the best night, we have the Slam Dunk and 3-Point Contest. Then Sunday should be just fun.
“Could they go out and play a little harder? Yes. But I don’t want them to come out and kill each other in an exhibition game.”
Or to get into one when your team is subpar. Got it, Zach?