Wolfpack men’s basketball is done. Despite months of hype surrounding a top notch recruiting class, N.C. State has managed to have another painstakingly average season. So, with N.C. State’s men’s basketball team in the proverbial tank, the NBA All-Star Game should come as a welcome sight to those who are truly fans of the game and not just the red and white. The NBA’s brightest stars will converge on Los Angeles on Feb. 20 for the annual All-Star Game to participate in what should be considered the most captivating all-star event of the three major American professional sports.
If you shift your attention to pro basketball momentarily–you know, that place the really good college players end up–you will see the NBA All-Star Game on the horizon. The NBA’s All-Star Game is undoubtedly the most thrilling all-star type spectacle a sports fan can behold–filled with numerous alley-oop dunks, blocks, three point shots and occasionally Shaquille O’Neal playing point guard for a minute or two. Other leagues simply cannot compete with the light-hearted, high-flying action the NBA All-Star Game offers.
In Major League Baseball, superior pitching causes offense to stall, leaving the game with a yawn-worthy score somewhere in the neighborhood of 4-3. In the National Football League, the best players often bow out of the Pro Bowl in favor of preserving their aching bodies, broken down from months of tackles and tumbles. If a fan claims to value all sports equally, the NBA All-Star game should stand head and shoulders above the competition.
With football season in the books, baseball months away, the Wolfpack’s primary concern seems to be next season’s head coach, rather than who they will be playing in the NCAA Tournament. The only major televised sporting event taking place this week is the NBA All-Star Game. Rather than dismissing NBA players as overpaid and apathetic as many college basketball fans often do, sit back and enjoy watching the ball repeatedly swish through the net, rather than clanking off the side of the rim. Such a sight will serve as good therapy to Wolfpack fans who have been longing to be impressed by a basketball team.
