They can't promise today's All-Star game will have the intensity of the NBA Finals. Or that there will be reckless diving for loose balls. Or coaches thrown out on technicals in the heat of competition. But players say today's game at the Delta Center should be at least one thing: entertaining.
"It's gonna be no different than any of the past games," said West guard Terry Porter. "Very high explosiveness, lots of dunks, a lot of fancy passes - the kind of thing people expect from an All-Star game."The 43rd annual All-Star game will be played at 4:30 p.m. and televised nationally on NBC.
Players from both teams worked out before a crowd of several thousand at the Salt Palace Saturday, then met with the media to talk about the upcoming contest. The East leads the all-time series 27-15, but the West won by a whopping 153-113 score in Orlando last year.
The game this year will feature an intriguing blend of old guard and new wave. The teams include such veteran All-Stars as Charles Barkley (7th year), Clyde Drexler (7th), Karl Malone (6th), Hakeem Olajuwon (8th), Patrick Ewing (7th), Michael Jordan (9th) and Isiah Thomas (12th), as well as first-year additions Larry Johnson, Shaquille O'Neal, Sean Elliott and Shawn Kemp.
"I have to favor the West to win," said West guard Terry Porter.
"I might have David Robinson and Karl Malone taking all outside shots - 3 pointers - and Charles Barkley playing point guard just to mix the game up," said West coach Paul Westphal. "Seriously, we'll have Karl posting up down low and Stockton passing to him. We'll try to play to their strengths."
Although the West did win last season, it has been a long, rough road over the years. Though the teams have each won four times in the last eight years, prior to that the East won five straight.
Players say whatever happens, their main objective is to entertain, whether it's Charles Barkley woofing with the crowd or Karl Malone on one of his "vanity" dunks. "A lot of fast breaks," said Elliott, "a lot of fancy passes and not a lot of half-court basketball."
Notable among those attending the practice session Saturday was Michael Jordan, who skipped Friday's press interview ses-sion along with teammate Scottie Pippen. Both have been notified they will be fined by the league. Jordan was in Las Vegas golfing.
Jordan was philosophical about skipping Friday's interview session. "It's going to charity," he said, "so it's my contribution."
He added that he saw reporters on Thursday and saw them again on Saturday. "I knew I'd see you guys the next day, and I'm not going to say anything different now than I would have said then," he said.
Jordan called the All-Star game "more or less like a pickup game, but it 's a lot of fun."
While there has been little or no controversy thus far this year, there was some publicity last week that East center Patrick Ewing felt he should start ahead of rookie O'Neal. "There's not a controversy," said Riley. "Shaquille deserves to start. You'll probably see Shaq and Patrick playing together at the same time at times."
Continued Riley, "That has been blown out of proportion. Patrick has never made a statement about not starting." Said Ewing, "I don't worry about those things. He got voted in so he should start. I'm happy for him. It's a Democratic system. He was voted the starter, so he deserves all the time that goes with that position. He does his thing, and I do mine. We're just different. I'm a little quieter."
The game promises to be a typically high-scoring, run-and-gun demonstration, geared toward pleasing the crowd. Last year's West team shot .653 from the field and tied the highest point total for a non-overtime game. "It's a show. That's what it's about," said East forward Dominique Wilkins. "You just go, have a good time and enjoy yourself."
Said the East's Thomas, "A lot of things we do (Sunday) will probably be just ad-libbed. You just try to do some special things with the guys on the team to keep it exciting. We want everyone to enjoy the game."
Meanwhile, the West's Hakeem Olajuwon took a more serious approach. "I think it's going to be a competitive game, because of the big matchups."