Some things were different (the Rising Stars Challenge changed formats), and some were the same (Kevin Hart won his fourth Celebrity Game MVP award), but Friday night was the perfect way to kick off the NBA’s All-Star Weekend.
NBA All-Star Friday: 3 things we learned on a night of celebrities and rising stars
The World vs. USA format was a smash success, Mo’ne Davis can ball, plus a couple of other things we learned on All-Star Friday.
Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
The night was full of amazing plays, hilarious moments and confused mascots. That’s what happens when celebrities take the court as an appetizer before a group of the most talented young basketball players in the world.
The team of internationals beat the United States team, 121-112, in the Rising Stars Challenge, and Andrew Wiggins took home the MVP award with 22 points, six rebounds and four assists. The West team, led by Skylar Diggins of the WNBA's Tulsa Shock and Memphis Grizzlies owner Robert Pera with 13 points each, won the Celebrity Game, 59-51. Yet Hart won his fourth consecutive MVP award, and announced that he wouldn't return next year to potentially win a fifth.
Here are a few of things we learned from one of the more peculiar nights on the NBA calendar.
1. Team USA vs. Team World was very fun
Not since the 2004 Olympic Games has Team USA let down it’s country the way it did on Friday night, falling to Team World in the Rising Stars Challenge. Wiggins may have won the MVP award, but it was the excitement of the international squad that made this one fun to watch. For the first time, the NBA ditched the rookies vs. sophomores format and had the foreigners face off against domestic players -- and the international players took it seriously. They were standing on the bench, egging one another on and playing hard. It paid off, the game was fun to watch. Hopefully enough foreign players enter the league on a yearly basis to keep this tradition going.
2. Try to score on Rudy Gobert at your own peril
Gobert, the Utah Jazz's second-year player out of France, is a menace down low; just ask anyone who tries to score on him in the paint. He's averaging 2.2 blocks in just 21.9 minutes per game this season. He had three Friday night, one of which all but sealed the win for the international team. He added 18 points and 12 rebounds, as well. Nerlens Noel became all to familiar with Gobert on a night that usually pushes defense to the back seat:
3. The awesomeness that is Mo’ne Davis hasn’t hit its expiration date
Mo’ne Davis stole the show Friday night. The little league star was being targeted lightheartedly by Hart early on in the Celebrity Game, but she got the last laugh. With the ball at the wing, she crossed and then spun by Hart for a pretty layup off the glass:
(h/t gifdsports)
Davis can throw a fastball, but she can also score a bucket.
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