Derrick Rose: Not Happy to Be Here

↵Unless you’re Kevin Spacey, All-Star Saturday’s main event -- the dunk contest -- disappointed. The ease of Dwight Howard’s baseline backboard dunk shocked, LeBron’s announcement (he might compete in ‘10) thrilled, and the prospect of Nate Robinson breaking Wilson Chandler’s back (what, no Gallinari?) added some intrigue to an otherwise pedestrian effort.
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↵I don’t need to tell you that Shooting Stars remained lame (we need older legends -- free Tom VanArsdale!) and that the 3-Point Shoot-out (won by a score LaSalle Thompson could hit) stunk. The debut of H.O.R.S.E. had too many breaks but worked well, even if the conditions (constrained space, sun) were less than perfect.
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↵But I’m telling you, the highlight came as Derrick Rose whipped through the Skills Challenge looking completely bored and pissed off.
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↵Rose didn’t even move at half-speed in the championship round. Actually, it went in fits and starts -- at the passing stations, Rose seemed frightened and unsure; he hung around, almost sure he’d need to try again. At the jump shot spot, he thought every single one would fall through -- he had absolutely no urgency to pick up the next ball when his shots clanked off the rim. He looked half-dead during the slalom dribble ... only to finish with one of the top three dunks of the entire night.
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↵The only explanation I can come up with is that Rose ate his body weight in gummy bears watching the other bucks playing H.O.R.S.E. Gelatinous candy is a helluva drug.↵