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ALL STAR WEEKEND

NBA All-Star 2014 | Weekend Schedule Of Events

Complete TNT & NBA TV broadcast schedule of major events for the 2014 All-Star Weekend:

THURSDAY, FEB. 13
ALL TIMES EASTERN (ET)
• 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. | All Day Dunk-A-Thon | NBA TV
• 5 p.m. | The Starters | NBA TV
• 6 p.m. | NBA GameTime | NBA TV
• 7 p.m. - 2 a.m. | All Day Dunk-A-Thon | NBA TV
• 8 p.m. | Nets vs. Bulls | TNT
• 10:30 p.m. | Thunder vs. Lakers | TNT
• 1 a.m. | Inside the NBA | TNT
FRIDAY, FEB. 14
ALL TIMES EASTERN (ET)
• 10:30 a.m. | BBVA Compass Rising Stars Challenge Practice | NBA TV
• 12:30 p.m. | NBA All-Star 2014 Media Day | NBA TV
• 3:30 p.m. | Basketball Hall of Fame announcement | NBA TV
• 5 p.m. | The Beat | NBA TV
• 6 p.m. | The Starters | NBA TV
• 7 p.m. | Sprint NBA All-Star Celebrity Game | ESPN
• 9 p.m. | BBVA Compass Rising Stars Challenge | TNT
• 11 p.m. | Inside The NBA | TNT
• 12 a.m. | NBA GameTime | NBA TV
SATURDAY, FEB. 15
ALL TIMES EASTERN (ET)
• 11:30 a.m. | NBA Inside Stuff | NBA TV
• Noon | East/West Practice & player interviews | NBA TV
• 3 p.m. | NBA D-League All Star Game and Boost Mobile Dream Factory | NBA TV
• 5 p.m. | The Big O (Oscar Robertson Special) | TNT
• 6 p.m. | Open Court: The Dunk in Depth & Defined | TNT
• 7 p.m. | Adam Silver news conference | NBA TV
• 7 p.m. | NBA on TNT All-Star Challenge presented by Samsung Galaxy | TNT
• 8 p.m. | TNT NBA Tip-Off | TNT
• 8:30 p.m. | State Farm All-Star Saturday Night | TNT
-- Sears Shooting Stars (1st Event)
-- Taco Bell Skills Challenge (2nd Event)
-- Foot Locker Three-Point Contest (3rd Event)
-- Sprite Slam Dunk (4th Event)

• 11 p.m. | NBA GameTime at All-Star 2014 | NBA TV
SUNDAY, FEB. 16
ALL TIMES EASTERN (ET)
• 1 p.m. | Legends Brunch | NBA TV
• 5 p.m. | NBA GameTime | NBA TV
• 6 p.m. | Sprint Pregame Concert | NBA TV
• 6:30 p.m. | NBA Style presented by Samsung Galaxy | TNT
• 7 p.m. | TNT NBA Tip-Off | TNT
• 8 p.m. | 63rd NBA All-Star Game | TNT
• 11:30 p.m. | Inside the NBA | NBA TV
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FAST BREAK: TIM DUNCAN, UNDERMANNED SPURS STOP CELTICS

WEEI

By Ben Rohrbach
 
 Tim Duncan turned back the clock against the Celtics. (AP)

Tim Duncan offered a reminder of what can happen when the Ping Pong balls don’t fall the Celtics way, turning back the clock 17 years after they missed out on one of the game’s great power forwards. Duncan finished with 25 points and 11 rebounds to held the Spurs hand the C’s their second loss in three games, 104-92.

Six Celtics scored in double figures — led by 15 points from Kris Humphries and Kelly Olynyk (10 rebounds, second straight double-double) — but the Celtics dropped to 19-35. Here’s what went wrong (and right) entering the All-Star break.

WHAT WENT WRONG

Worst first: Sans two of their big three — Tony Parker (back) and Manu Ginobili (hamstring) — as well as key contributors Kawhi Leonard (hand) and Tiago Splitter (calf), the Spurs still dug the Celtics an early hole. Led by Marco Belinelli, who posted nine first-quarter points and five early assists without Avery Bradley (ankle) to frustrate him, San Antonio shot 56 percent as a team and led 25-19 after one.

Green thumbs down: It was an ugly Jeff Green outing this time around. He missed his first six shots before knocking down a 3 at the end of the first quarter, and then failed on a couple bunnies before sinking a buzzer-beating layup to limit the damage to 48-44 at the break. He had more turnovers (2) than rebounds (1), assists, steals or blocks at the half. Green’s engagement early once again proved an indication of his overall performance.

Not going streaking: After logging six straight double-doubles, Jared Sullinger‘s string came to an end. The reigning Eastern Conference Player of the Week started 2-of-9 from the field (0-2 3P) and sat for a large stretch of the second half in favor of Olynyk, Kris Humphries and (wait for it) Joel Anthony.


WHAT WENT RIGHT

Early KO: After recording the first double-double of his career on Monday, Olynyk had himself another nice outing against the Spurs. He had 10 points, six rebounds and two assists — a welcome sight after an up-and-down (mostly down) couple months. Another encouraging sign: He split his four early buckets between the paint and midrange.

Right guard: In 15 first-half minutes stretching midway through the first quarter to a few minutes before halftime, Bayless put himself on early triple-double alert, gathering four points, four boards and six assists. He bolstered a backcourt without Bradley and actually helped the Celtics dig themselves out of an 11-point hole with Rondo on the bench. Behind Bayless, the Celtics even grabbed a short-lived 36-34 lead six minutes into the second quarter.

Long-distance Rondo: The Celtics point guard didn’t make three 3-pointers in a game for the first seven years of his career, and now he’s accomplished that feat in two of his last three games. He connected on 3-of-6 attempts against the Mavericks on Sunday and drilled all three tries against San Antonio. In just 10 games this season, Rondo already has 10 triples — the same number he had in both his 2010-11 and 2011-12 seasons.
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Rapid Reaction: Spurs 104, Celtics 92

By Chris Forsberg | ESPNBoston.com

BOSTON -- Rapid reaction after the San Antonio Spurs defeated the Boston Celtics 104-92 on Wednesday night at TD Garden:

THE NITTY GRITTY
Tim Duncan scored 23 of his game-high 25 points after the intermission, adding nine rebounds and two assists as the Spurs blew the game open late. Marco Belinelli added a double-double (16 points, 11 rebounds), while Boris Diaw (18 points) and Patty Mills (16 points) aided the Spurs' scoring output. Rajon Rondo finished with a team-high 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting while setting a new career-high with four 3-pointers in the game. He now has 11 triples in 11 games and is well on his way to eclipsing his season high of 17 3-pointers during the 2009-10 season. Kris Humphries (15 points) and Kelly Olynyk (15 points, 10 rebounds) provided a bench boost for Boston.

TURNING POINT
The Celtics were within a possession a minute into the fourth quarter, but Boris Diaw converted a putback before Patty Mills generated an and-one layup off a steal to quickly push San Antonio's lead to eight (76-68). A couple Duncan buckets and the lead was up into double-digits a couple minutes later. Boston never got closer than six the rest of the way (with Duncan and the Spurs quick to answer when they did) and San Antonio eventually pushed its lead as high as 18 in the final minutes.

LOOSE BALLS
The Spurs shot 50 percent from the floor, including 47.4 percent from beyond the arc. ... All 11 players that dressed for Boston played, including a fourth-quarter cameo from Joel Anthony. ... The Spurs were without Tony Parker (rest), Tiago Splitter (calf), Manu Ginobili (hamstring) and Kawhi Leonard (finger).

WHAT IT MEANS
Despite winning four of their first five games to open February, the Celtics (19-35) enter the All-Star break on a losing note and are virtually tied with the Los Angeles Lakers for the fifth-worst record in basketball. Boston will get a week off from game action and will take the next four days off from basketball activities before reconvening in Phoenix on Monday. The Celtics visit the Suns in their last game before the trade deadline next Wednesday.

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Got to say that I am impressed that KO is working hard and improving his game to a point that he looks like he belongs. He was not NBA ready but he is showing that hard work does payoff!

I guess we now are into the DEATH WATCH to see who stays and who goes.  Should be an interesting week to see how Danny is charting the next course for the GOOD SHIP CELTICS,

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Jeff Green now shooting a scintillating 35.4% (51 for 144) in his last nine games.

Trade him for Asik, but I doubt Houston would do it since they already have a better player at SF in Parsons.

I had hoped Jeff might have "found religion" in the past few games, but he didn't look as if she were into the game tonight.  I have the feeling he has some disenchantment with how he's being supported in his role by the team.

For the most part tonight, they looked like five individuals out there.  The bench was better than the starters; and it's no coincidence that the bench handed out more assists than the starters.  Whatever may or may not happen before the trading deadline, I look forward to their hopefully regrouping and starting the remainder of the season with a clean slate and the knowledge that they've proven in a number of ways that improvement is possible.

Kelly got my game ball for his effort and second consecutive double-double, but I was actually more happy with his defensive improvement lately.

I am increasingly impressed with Bayless' backup PF play.  I believe he had 9 assists tonight, and the second unit had more energy than the first unit.

Otherwise, I'd be manufacturing things to say if I went on.  Especially in terms of glimmers.

I've always thought the San Antonio played the "right" way.

Sam

Hi,
Celtics didn't have answer for Timmy. Plus it was like a shooting gallery for Spurs.
Speaking about shooting, I'm not breathing in a hope that the last night shooting wasn't a fluke but a continuation of a trend for RR. As Tommy said he'll be an NBA nightmare if he shoots like he did yesterday.

AK

Funny how much harder it is beating a short-handed team when they're not the Bucks.

They have a system.  Pop's got a system, like the way Phil Jackson has/had a system, and he goes out and finds players that fit his system.  If I have a concern about Brad Stevens it's that he tries to maximize each player's strengths but that suggests to me he doesn't have "a system".  To be fair, I'm going to wait to see what happens when he has a more balanced and complete roster to work with for a while before I drive a nail through this.  His roster is about as solid as mud right now, as opposed to Pop whose roster over the years is the poster-boy of stability and continuity.  Clearly and understandably, Los Spurs out-executed us last night.  When Doc was winning a championship here in Boston people were still saying he was the "2nd best coach in the league".  We lost to the #1 best coach in the league last night.

1.  And the head executioner was The Big Fundamental.  He was getting pissed at what he considered to be lack of respect by the refs and then proceeded to pound everybody Brad threw at him into paste.  Has Duncan ever gotten a technical foul in 16 years?  Probably not, he just takes it out on whomever the sacrificial lamb is that has been assigned to him.  A bad first half but wow, what a second half.  11 points in the 3rd on 3-5 shooting and a ton of fts and 12 in the 4th on 5-6.  That's 23 of his total 25 in the 2nd half and he made it look easy.  After 3 quarters, both teams had 26 points in the paint.  By the end, they had 46 and we had 32 and most of that was Timmy.  Satch Sullinger laid into his son for his lousy body language recently.  He told Jared "control your attitude and your footwork and you will be successful".  Sully needs to sit down with the game film from last night and watch Timmy's footwork.  I've said many times over the years that Duncan's high school coach should be bronzed (even if he's still alive).  I consciously try to focus on his feet, because his footwork is a thing of beauty.  Most of his shots in the 2nd half were from 3' away and that's because he got his defender exactly where he wanted him, on his hip.  They ran the same play a couple of times.  Ball high on one side, Duncan in the low block, pass the ball to the top of the key as Duncan moves across the lane and just dump it in to him.  First time they did it right side, then left side.  With their 3pt shooters, you can't leave the perimeter to help out.  It's similar to what SVG used to do with Howard, but Howard isn't Timmy.  Timmy will hit a cutter in motion and not just a stationary 3pt shooter.  This may be the last time we see one of, if not the, greatest PFs in NBA history in Boston.  If so, I'd like to say what a pleasure it has been to watch him.  Especially, his feet.

2.  In Sully's defense, aside having to play against the matchup from Hell, he was sick yesterday and had to get an IV to take fluids.  He still grabbed 7 rebounds, 5 offensive.  A tough game for The Beast, but he lost this battle.  At least he lost to the best.

3.  Three starters ended up in double-digits, but through 3 quarters Kelly was the only Celtic in double-digits.  If there were glimmers out there, Kelly was one of them.  It's one thing to have a big double-double game against an undermanned Milwaukee Bucks team, it's quite another to have one against the Spurs, undermanned or otherwise.  He's getting "situational awareness".  He's coming off a pick and is instinctively knowing where his defender is.  Before, he'd hesitate and that would give the defender a chance to catch up, now Kelly knows he has the shot or can drive to the basket.  Some nice drives by him last night (both to his left, I believe).  He had a few defensive brain farts, one that let Diaw get an offensive rebound and another where Bonner was all alone downcourt, but he also had some good defensive sequences where he sealed the baseline (still one of his weaknesses, in general) and picked up on drivers.  His defense is definitely improving, although that's not saying too much considering just how far down he's coming from.  In the month of February, he is shooting 48.6% and grabbing 6.7 rebounds in 20mpg.  If (IF! IF! IF!) this is Kelly finally figuring out the pro game and starting to turn the corner, then this could be a very big glimmer.  We've seen it with Sully this year, where he was good but then it was almost like a lightbulb went on over his head and his game went a quantum step up.  This would be Kelly's first lightbulb.  Two double-doubles in a row and heading to Nawlins (the locals actually pronounce it more like "Nwalins" than "Nawlins" and certainly not "New Orleans"!) might produce a nice bump up in his confidence and, I sense, he's has been confidence-driven, or lack thereof.  

4.  After a couple of big scoring games, Jerryd Bayless "cooled off", like the North Pole is "cool".  He has games, like last night for example, where he is unconscious.  He's shooting 38% this season (his career fg% is 41%) and his fg% in February is 43% but he has games where you just go "wow!".  Last night he was a microwave.  More impressively is his assisting.  9 assists and only 1 TO vs a very good team.  He's new, he hasn't had a training camp with Stevens so I'm not surprised to see inconsistency.  He will be worth watching over the next 2 months to see if he settles down.  So far, though, he definitely qualifies as a legit back up point guard for the Celtics.  He is making a case for himself and a new contract.  Consistency, though, is a greatly valued trait in a point guard since an up-and-down point guard means an up-and-down offense.  He's 25 years old.  Old (and experienced with 5 years in the league) enough to be able, and should be expected, to show what he's got but not too old that he has to do it immediately or he's past his shelf life.

5.  Jeff Green.  4-17.  41.6% this season.  Another "he makes my eyes hurt most of the time but when he's on "Oh My God!" player.  Destined, long term, to be a starter or a bench player in this league?  How many coaches would accept the wide swings in performance he delivers from a starter?

6.  Was this CJ's first "non-game"?  14 minutes of nothing.  Pressey with 1 assist and 3 TOs.

7.  Hump was working his butt off last night.  Sure, he got croaked by Timmy too but there's no shame there, everybody has at one point or another.  He is the only player on the Celtics whose game doesn't suffer a pendulum swing whether he's starting or coming off the bench.  His /minute production is steady.  I like Brandon Bass, a lot!, but Bass doesn't play as well off the bench.  Neither does Sully.  Hump provides flexibility.  The rumor mill has Bass going, and I'll be sorry to see him go if it happens, but I'm not going to be sorry to see Hump stay.  Of course, his contract expires in a few months.  15 points on 5-9 and 6 rebounds in 23 minutes.  He attacked open lanes, he hit his shots. I'd love to keep all these guys, but that's not happening, and we all know that. I have confidence that Trader Danny will get good deals, if not the first one then the next one where he rolls the first trade into something bigger and better. I hope he proves me prescient. Bass and Hump are both valuable and should be valued. I saw a report that says that NBA GMs think that Danny is over-valuing his players. In other words, he's driving hard bargains. Maybe he is, and maybe there's good reason to. One of the nice things about rebuilding is that you have a longer view of things (as opposed to "win now" teams like the Nets decided they were when they traded for Pierce and Garnett). Take the longer view, Danny, stay calm and soldier on. I'll still be a Celtic fan if it takes you another year or two to do it right. It's all about 18. Not 18 next year, just 18.

8.  Patty?  What the hell kind of a name for a male athlete is Patty?  Based upon his shooting and play last night, he can name himself any damn thing he wants.  Another carefully and appropriately machined cog fit into Pop's system.  No Tony Parker?  No problem, we've got a Joseph-cog and a Mills-cog here that will work. Actually, with 3 French players on the Spurs, maybe I should have said "Pas de probleme". Is Tony Parker their chief scout too? Pop has described Nando de Colo, a French player they selected 53rd in 2009 (but they stashed him in Europe for a year), as a "Poor Man's Danny Ainge". “Danny was a better athlete than this kid is, and a little bigger, but he really understands how to play the game,” Popovich said. “He fits in well with the group, makes good decisions, finishes on the break. He’s going to be fun to watch.” Great, another Pop-cog, one that reminds him of a starting guard on a championship team we are all familiar with. Pop is something else, he really is. He has built a winning culture so attractive it has kept high quality players from dreaming of media hubs like NY and LA.

9.  No Tony Parker, no problem?  Well, maybe for Rondo.  No big game.  Yeah, he ended up being high scorer after turning into a 3 pt shooting machine.  In the last 3 games he has played in February, he is shooting 59% from the field and 54% from 3.  Another Celtic starter who didn't wake up until the 4th quarter.


Danny's got his snake-skin jacket on and is on his way to Louisiana.  He's going to be wheeling-and-dealing.  The chances of us seeing these same band of brothers a week from Friday (2/21, the day after the trading deadline) are not good.  It has been interesting, and yes, trying at times.  Last night, on the post-game show, I listened to Ms. Peabody and Sherman (that would be Jackie Mac and Draper).  According to Jackie, 4-5 years is a reasonable timeframe for a rebuild, not 2.  Let's set our sights and expectations accordingly.  If you remember, it took Danny 5 years the first time and, truthfully, are there any talents like KG that may come available now?


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