3 takeaways as Celtics Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum shine in All-Star Game

COMMENTARY

Team LeBron rolled over Team Durant in the NBA All-Star game on Saturday, as Giannis Antetokounmpo, Stephen Curry and Jaylen Brown took a big lead over Bradley Beal, Jayson Tatum and Kyrie Irving into the fourth quarter and ended the game with a 170-150 victory.

Here’s what transpired.

The big picture

It’s an All-Star Game. There’s very little big picture. No real defense was played, some highlights were created and nobody got hurt. Sunday’s action wasn’t the most exciting All-Star Game, but if everyone remains healthy, the league will likely consider it largely a success.

Player of the Game

Giannis Antetokounmpo: 35 points, 16-for-16, 3-for-3 from three.

Steph Curry had some viral moments, which makes him the real winner, but it’s impossible to pick a different player of the game when Antetokounmpo literally did not miss a shot (even if his 3-pointers banked in).

Celtics Player of the Game

Jaylen Brown: 22 points, 8-for-12 from the floor, 5-for-7 from three.

Brown helped Team LeBron pull away down the stretch with several shots in the fourth quarter and converted a four-point play. Tatum’s 21-point performance was nice, but a little less flashy, and the All-Star game is all about flash.

Highlight of the game

Both Damian Lillard and Stephen Curry pulled up from half-court in the first half, and both buried their attempts. Lillard later ended the game with a half-court 3-pointer.

The best professional basketball players are incredible.

DAME AND STEPH FROM HALF COURT.

This is wild. pic.twitter.com/UnHphdX86g

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 8, 2021

Celtics highlight of the game

Brown took some ambitious shots, including this turnaround over James Harden that grabbed the attention of the TNT booth.

ooOOOoOo pic.twitter.com/zwnmGY9DE7

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) March 8, 2021

Three takeaways

1. The new format with the Elam Ending can be great, but it requires a more competitive score entering the fourth quarter. Team Durant (which, of course, did not have Kevin Durant, who missed the game due to injury) appeared disheartened and uninterested in the fourth quarter, while Team LeBron continued firing up open 3-pointers and burying them. Team Durant was also without Joel Embiid, who — along with Team LeBron’s Ben Simmons — was ruled out before the game due to contact tracing.

2. The All-Star game was very long with a lot interruptions and fanfare, but the format — with the Skills Challenge, 3-Point Contest and Dunk Contest interspersed throughout the evening — actually seemed like a reasonable structure. All-Star Saturday nights often feel incomplete. All-Star Sunday, when it only features the game, is a little anticlimactic. Packing it all together was a lot of content, but having too much on one night actually made for a better product.

3. The dunk contest wasn’t great. Anfernee Simons won by flying through the air and nearly kissing the rim, and Obi Toppin had a couple of nice dunks, but this certainly wasn’t a showdown between Zach LaVine and Aaron Gordon.

Anfernee Simons tried the kiss the rim dunk 😘 pic.twitter.com/hZYyQdPcTl

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 8, 2021

The dunk contest generally seems to be electric or bad with little room in between. Fans probably need to accept that while the electric years are more of a rarity, they are well worth watching when they come around.