On February 21st, 1993, basketball’s biggest spectacle came to Salt Lake City – AND I HAD TICKETS!!!! I was so excited to take my older brother to NBA All-Star weekend for his birthday. We watched from the rafters on All-Star Saturday as Harold Miner won the dunk contest and Mark Price won the 3-point shootout.
The game on Sunday was a tightly contested match that went into overtime. Ultimately the west won 135-132 and Karl Malone and John Stockton were co-MVPs. 9 of the ten starters went on to the NBA Hall of fame. It was an amazing experience.
Sadly, the annual event has become more hype than substance in recent years. That is why I was so excited to hear of the new format: 2 captains get to pick their teams from a pool of 12 players decided by a combination of fan votes (50%), player votes (25%), and media votes (25%). I hope this shakeup will revive the weekend to be more exciting…just like it was in 1993.
If the 1993 game were played with the new rules, Michael Jordan would be the captain for the East and his good buddy Charles Barkley would be the captain form the West. How do you think the teams would shake out with MJ picking first?
Isaiah Thomas John Stockton
Scottie Pippen Clyde Drexler
Larry Johnson Karl Malone
Shaquille O’Neal David Robinson
Brad Daugherty Sean Elliott
Joe Dumars Tim Hardaway
Patrick Ewing Shawn Kemp
Larry Nance Dan Majerle
Mark Price Danny Manning
Detlef Scrempf Hakeem Olajuwon
Dominique Wilkins Terry Porter
Click here to see how CBS sports writer Chris Barnewell imagines last year’s game with the new format.
You can watch the videos below to relive 1993’s game in all its glory.
