Players of all ages and at all levels often aspire to make the All Star team. Some see it as a badge of honor and as being recognized for a job well done.

Others use the potential possibility of being named an All Star as an extra boost of motivation to work hard and stay focused.

Whatever the reason, if you want to make the All Star team you must make sure that you DO NOT play like an All Star!

If you watched Sunday night’s NBA All Star game then you know exactly what I am talking about.

No close-outs, no ball pressure, centers with no range firing up 3 pointers, uncontested shot after uncontested shot, the lane opening up like the Red Sea on every drive to the basket, no one running hard in either direction, no fouls, no steals, very little passing, etc.

Entertaining – yes, at times. Real basketball – not even close! In fact, if you play that way  you’ll be lucky to make most middle school teams!

Is it too much to ask that the best players on the planet actually play hard and really compete against one another?

As a real fan I don’t want to watch a two hour dunk contest disguised as a game.

I want to watch great players getting after it, sharing the ball, playing some defense, and actually competing.

I want to be able to tell my sons that if they just play as hard as the All Stars then they’ll be all right when it comes to their own teams.

I’ve been thinking that maybe the NBA should take the same approach that Major Leage Baseball takes – the division (league) that wins the All Star game gets home court advantage during the finals.

Make the game worth something and maybe the players will play harder.

Until then, if you want to make the All Star team, don’t play like an All Star!

This entry was posted on Monday, February 18th, 2013 at 6:00 am and is filed under Defense, Discussion, In the Press, Motivation, NBA, Stricklin. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.