Not a year goes by that I don't look forward to the NBA's annual All-Star game with the enthusiasm of a dog chasing its tail.
This year was no exception.
It was a chance to see Shaquille O'Neal redeem himself for his miserable All-Star outing of a year ago. It was a matchup of great centers--O'Neal, Patrick Ewing and Alonzo Mourning suiting up for the East squad, while Hakeem Olajuwon and David Robinson donned jerseys for the West. It was Grant Hill's first appearance as a bona fide superstar.
But in the wake of the NBA's mid-season classic, I'm feeling more than a bit disappointed. I'm feeling a poignant sense of letdown. I'm feeling, well, like a dog that just found out what it's like to catch its tail.
It's not that Dana Barros was eliminated in the first round of the three-point shootout on All-Star Saturday after nearly taking the title a year ago. Nor is it the fact that not one contestant in the slam dunk competition put on a show that even approached anything close to originality. It's not even that Hill tarnished an otherwise solid performance by shooting 0-for-4 from the free throw line.
No, this disappointment stems from the fact that this game was played less as a team game and more as a showcase for individual talent. It's the result of a sense that even while the West squad was pulling away en route to a 139-112 blowout victory, all anybody seemed to care about was how many straight jumpers Sacramento's Mitch Richmond could rain from the top of the key.
It grows out of a realization that this game and this league aren't what they used to be.
That's not to say the talent isn't there. There's more talent in the NBA now than there ever has been. There's more young talent as well, as guys like Hill, Dallas' Jason Kidd and Milwaukee's Glenn Robinson are all making an immediate impact in their rookie seasons, while Shaq and Anfernee Hardaway already have Orlando primed for an NBA title.
And if the game has changed at all, it's made it easier for a superstar to showcase his talents. A stricter hand-checking rule has promoted more unobstructed drives to the basket. And moving the three-point line in has records falling faster than Minnesota Fats can sink an eight ball.
But it used to be that even talented young players could expect to suffer through at least a few years with a lackluster team before finally experiencing the thrill of repeated victory. Players that were drafted by bad teams stayed with bad teams. As they matured as players, they made those teams better. That's the way things worked.
Now the tendency is to jump ship at the first sign of adversity. Chris Webber won last year's Rookie-of-the-Year award with Golden State but decided to hold out this year until he was traded to Washington. Just this week, Clyde Drexler ended weeks of demanding that he be traded by taking his services from Portland to Houston.
Chicago's Scottie Pippen is still waiting for his trade wishes to be granted. Word is he'd like to go to Phoenix--where he can be with a winner.
And these overpaid superstars are eclipsing what used to be long-standing team rivalries. It used to be Celtics-Lakers was the matchup of the year. Boston-Philly topped the list if you were from the Northeast. Detroit-Atlanta was nothing to scoff at.
Today's equivalent? No doubt it's Shaq versus Ewing.
And what of the All-Star game? Remember when Isiah Thomas and Magic Johnson used to turn the game into a virtual playground romp? Remember when the most important stat for these guys was the assist? Remember how much fun it was to watch them make their teams better?
It has been suggested that Hardaway and Seattle's Gary Payton might eventually develop this same type of rivalry. And while the pair dished out more than their share of assists in the contest, don't go betting your inheritance on a return to the good ol' days.
Because no matter how much I love this game, it sure ain't what it used to be.
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