The last day of the 2023 NBA All Star weekend is here, and with it, the main event, the All Star Game itself. However, there are other activities to watch before then, so here’s a quick rundown:

NBA Legends Awards, 1:00 PM ET on NBA TV: This is something the NBA has instituted recently as a way of honoring former NBA players who are continuing positive work inside and outside of basketball. Here’s a look at last season’s award winners.

NBA G League Next Up Game, 3:00 PM ET on NBA TV: This is essentially the G-League equivalent of the All-Star game mixed in a bit with rising stars. Th game focuses more on younger G-League guys who are more likely to become NBA players, and has two teams led by Luka Garza and Scoot Henderson. Scoot by himself is a reason to watch, but honestly, these teams are pretty stacked with college legends and guys who have already played a bit in the league.

All Star Game Tip-Off Pregame Show, 6:00 PM ET on TNT: This is exactly what it sounds like, I’m guessing. No basketball will be played, jokes will be made, bad opinions will be shared.

All Star Draft, 7:30 PM ET on TNT: Some people have really enjoyed the “All Star Draft” over the past couple years, so the NBA has moved it to prominence by having it right before the game. Giannis and LeBron will choose their squads starting with reserves, and then starters. Maybe there’s some drama, who knows. For Clippers fans, my guess is the highly respected Paul George will be drafted earlier than later.

All-Star Game, 8:30 PM ET on TNT: This is it, the big game. The use of ELAM endings the past few years has made the games slightly more competitive, if you’re into that sort of thing. Otherwise, you know what you’re getting – lots of dunks, little to no defense until the final few minutes.

Leave your comments below!

2023 NBA All Star Sunday Game Thread
Robert Flom

All-Star weekend has become a real thing, with events going on all the time starting with last night and running through the game itself on Sunday night. There are no Clippers today, but if you want to follow along, here you go.

Here’s a quick rundown of events today:

NBA x HBCU Classic at 4:00 PM ET on NBA TV: This is a college basketball game between two HBCU institutions, Grambling State University and Southern University. In terms of competitive basketball, it will probably be the best you see all weekend.

Adam Silver Press Conference at 7:00 PM ET on NBA TV: I have no idea what this is about, maybe like a state of the NBA?

All-Star Saturday Night at 8:00 PM ET on TNT: There are three main events tonight, starting with the Skills Challenge. There are three teams – one is the Antetokounmpo brothers, another is rookies, and the final team is members of the Jazz (the weekend is in Salt Lake City).

The second event, and in my opinion the highlight of the evening, is the three-point contest. There are eight contestants – Tyrese Haliburton, Tyler Herro, Buddy Hield, Kevin Huerter, Damian Lillard, Lauri Markkanen, Julius Randle, and Jayson Tatum. My money is probably on Huerter or Hield.

Finally is the once-mighty dunk contest, now reduced to the likes of Jericho Sims, Troy Murphy III, Mac McClung, and Kenyon Martin Jr. I have no idea, but I’d lean Martin.

That’s about it! Leave your comments below!

NBA All Star Saturday Thread
Robert Flom

It was just announced on TNT that Clippers’ guard Paul George has made the 2023 All Star Game as a reserve, voted by NBA coaches. This is PG’s 8th All Star Game, adding another accolade to what is already a first-ballot Hall of Fame career.

George is averaging 23.3 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 5.4 assists in 34.1 minutes across 37 games played while shooting 52.5% from 2, 38.5% from three, and 88.5% from the free throw line while playing very good defense. He’s also effectively acted as the Clippers’ point guard for much of the season, which has led to increased turnovers, but also to a ton of offensive production.

While George has missed some time with injuries, so have a number of other established Western Conference stars, including Devin Booker and Anthony Davis, and the Clippers’ own Kawhi Leonard. For the coaches, 37 games with a hefty minutes load was enough for PG, who has certainly been an All Star caliber player this year. The Clippers’ recent turnaround and placement as the 4th seed in the West probably also helped. Personally, Paul George might have been behind Kawhi for me, as even though Kawhi has played a lot less, he’s been so good in his games played that I think he could have squeaked by. However, coaches are usually anti load-management, and that certainly hurt Kawhi in this setting.

Congratulations to Paul George on making the 2023 All Star Game!

Paul George Makes the 2023 All Star Game as Reserve
Robert Flom

The NBA just announced the results of its voting for starters for the 2021 All Star Game on TNT. To nobody’s surprise, Clippers’ superstar forward Kawhi Leonard was selected to start in the All Star Game. This will be his fifth All Star nod, a surprisingly low number for how great an impact Kawhi has had on the NBA over the past decade.

Kawhi was third in the fan voting for frontcourt players in the Western Conference, behind Nikola Jokic and LeBron James, third in the media vote behind the aforementioned players, and fourth in player voting behind Jokic, LeBron, and Anthony Davis. This gave him a slight edge over AD, who was 4th in fan voting and 5th in media voting (behind Rudy Gobert), thus earning him the spot.

Kawhi is averaging 26.7 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 5.0 assists per game while shooting 51.3% from the field, 38.9% from three, and 87.9% from the free throw line. Those are exceptional numbers, and combine that with his defensive play and the Clippers’ excellent play when he’s on the court, and you have a clear and deserving candidate.

Paul George, the Clippers’ other star, missed out. He ranked fifth in all three voting categories, and will have to earn a reserve vote from the pool of NBA head coaches. While he’s probably having a better season than Davis, the three voted starters are clearly better than PG, so it’s not really a surprise or disappointment that PG got left off. He will almost certainly make the game as a reserve.

Funny enough, a few other Clippers players received votes as well. Fans can vote for anyone, so just about all players received some votes, but Pat Beverley and Lou Williams received love from their peers with 6 and 5 player votes respectively for the backcourt position. From the frontcourt, Serge Ibaka received 5 votes, while Nic Batum received 7. Those players are all respected veterans, and probably just had a few friends vote for them, but it’s still cool to see (even if they’re all undeserving for an All Star Game).

That’s about it! Kawhi Leonard is in the 2021 All Star Game, and we will keep you posted regarding Paul George’s status – the reserves should be released next week.

Kawhi Leonard To Start in Fifth All Star Game
Robert Flom

The All Star Break is here, so it’s time to take a deep breath and evaluate the Clippers and the NBA at large with 2/3 of the season gone. Rob and Louis first of all talk about the 2020 NBA All Star Game and its associated events, and discuss whether the game and which players excel in it really means anything. They then move on to the Clippers, who lost three of their last four games before the break, but who Rob and Louis remain relatively unconcerned about in the short term. However, the guys are worried about the Clippers’ injuries, and speculate that the Marcus Morris acquisition was more of a hedge against a Paul George injury. They then wrap about by handing out some disrespect, and giving brief predictions on the rest of the 2020 NBA season.

Check out the pod here!

Same Old Clippers: All-Star Game, Marcus Morris Trade, and Clippers Injuries
Robert Flom

Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard was named the recipient of the Kobe Bryant 2020 NBA All-Star MVP Award last night, the first winner of the honor with its new title and with the new All Star Game rules. Kawhi scored 30 points (on 11-18 shooting) while draining 8 threes, and contributed 7 rebounds and 4 assists as well. Leonard was the leading scorer in the contest, and was the primary driver behind team LeBron’s resounding 1st quarter victory.

The new format was widely considered a resounding success, with defense and real effort on display from the late 3rd quarter on. Kawhi was instrumental in the game’s competitiveness, working hard on the defensive end of the court and coming down with a couple huge rebounds. He was clearly one of the best players out there, and stood out amidst a loaded All Star crop.

In the grand scheme of things, the All Star Game (and Kawhi’s winning MVP of it) means nothing. It’s a meaningless game that will be forgotten about as soon as regular games begin again. However, it’s still a nice honor, and puts Leonard alone with Michael Jordan as winners of Defensive Player of the Year, Finals MVP, and All Star Game MVP. Not bad company to be in. Congrats to Kawhi, and hopefully this is not the last MVP award he will be receiving for the Clippers this year.

Kawhi Leonard Earns 2020 NBA All-Star MVP Award
Robert Flom