Well, they did it. They fixed the All-Star game. Nick Nurse, Kyle Lowry, and Pascal Siakam, all members of Team Giannis, failed to overcome Team LeBron, as they fell 157-155 in one of the most fun, most wonderful, most attention-demanding All-Star games of my lifetime.
The Elam Rule seemed to fix the game itself. Each quarter was its own mini game, and the winning team of each quarter won $100,000 for charity. Then after three quarters, 24 points, in commemoration of Kobe Bryant, was added to the leading team’s total score, and the first team to reach that number won the game. Winning the game was worth an extra $100,000, so there was a total of $500,000 given to charity from the game. For those who are familiar with ultimate frisbee, the concept of how to reach the final score is called a ‘soft cap’ in that sport, where it originated.
After three solid but unremarkable quarters, Team Giannis led, but the intensity of the game dialed to maximum in the final frame. Defense reached a peak as the stars actually started trying.Even more fun for Raptors fans, the Toronto contingent was incredibly involved in determining the results of the game. Nick Nurse of course trusted his stars to win the game. Lowry attempted to draw at least four charges — two of which were called. He took one on the numbers from LeBron James in transition, and because the refs weren’t ready for an All-Star game in which players tried, the charge wasn’t called. But later, Lowry took a full-speed charge from former teammate Kawhi Leonard in transition, and he also took a near-game saving charge from James Harden in isolation in the half-court. Lowry was unbelievable. He finished with 13 points, eight assists, five rebounds, and three steals in 28 minutes played off the bench. All-Star game or not, Lowry will always be Lowry.
Siakam was only slightly less involved, as he gathered 15 points and six rebounds in a solid performance. He had a few post-ups towards the end of the game in which he could have saved the day for Team Giannis, with a mismatch against James Harden, but Siakam was unable to make any impact there.
All in all, it was a staggeringly fun All-Star game, and the Toronto contingent was a huge reason why. The charge Lowry took on Leonard was one of the great moments of the game. Lowry over everything, of course, and this All-Star game is just one more reason why.
