The All Star game in Las Vegas was my third, after New York and Houston. I usually look forward to the event as one that will bring many surprises, and I wasn't disappointed this time around.

 

The first and last surprises of the weekend turned out to be how hard it was to get into, and out of, Las Vegas. After a 10-hour direct flight from Moscow to New York, JFK airport and Delta Airlines kept us in the plane, on the ground, for an additional four hours. It seems they only had one "Push-back" tractor with tire chains that could navigate the ice, and therefore all the gates were occupied by planes that couldn't initiate push-back. When I finally got off the plane, we found that our Vegas flight had been delayed, and we waited from 8:30 pm to 1:00 am to catch a 5:00 pm flight to Vegas. We were lucky to get out; many didn't make it, many flights were cancelled. NBA Vice President of Operations Stu Jackson was on the same flight, but didn't make it on board.

 

We arrived in McCarren Intl. airport sometime around 4:00 am, and quickly caught a cab to the Monte Carlo Hotel, where our rooms were booked.

 

Somehow we managed to get up for a 9:00 breakfast, and headed out to the "Magic" apparel trade show. While here we met with many brands that are known to our customers such as And 1, K1X, and UNK. We also met with many suppliers that our customers should soon see represented in both our wholesale and retail portfolios. We found the show very useful- and are glad we went.

 

The evening of the 15 ^th, Spalding hosted a dinner at the Venetian Hotel, where representatives from the NBA (Rob Millman, Akash Jain, Rick Barry) and many distributors attended, from Russia, Mexico, China, Brazil, Japan, Canada and Germany. We were happy to introduce our partners, Vallo and Magnus from AS FIFAA in Estonia to our many friends in the room. We listened to the update on the status of the Composite Official Ball, and welcomed the launches of the Neverflat Soccer ball and Volleyball. Dinner was fabulous, and it was great to catch up with everybody.

Friday morning saw us back at the Magic Show, where we made the rounds and purchased items that were for sale due to it being the last day of the show. We also met with Tony Pessok, to discuss further cooperation between UNK and Eaglesports, as well as several other "Urban" brands that he owns. From here it was a quick trip to the Venetian Hotel and a meeting with Spalding and the NBA, to familiarize those organizations with the sports retail and basketball markets in the Baltic States. The meetings went very well.

 

Friday night was time for the T-Mobile Rookie Challenge, where the rookies played the sophomores. This event was the least-attended of the weekend, with the majority of seats being reserved for school children- who generated quite a bit of noise. As there were no official NBA parties scheduled for Friday night, this was gambling night - and I did NOT do well at the craps table. I did win both sports bets I made, one on the Dallas Mavericks over Houston Rockets (2.5 pt. spread) the other on UMASS over Fordham.

 

Saturday Morning we hit Jam Session, the huge, interactive, showcase of the NBA and its partners. The first order of business here was to hit the Adidas Jam Session Store, to pick up souvenirs and gifts. After this we walked around, checking out the activities, randomly meeting friends, colleagues and stars of the NBA. Spalding Basketball was everywhere- on courts, balls, inflatables, signage etc. This is a great event.

All Star Saturday Night presented by EA Sports included the Shooting Stars, Skills Challenge, Three-point Shootout and Slam Dunk contest. The quality of these events over the last few years has been questionable, especially last year when Nate Robinson was given more than 15 attempts to make his final dunk and win the contest. This year's event therefore, was a pleasant surprise, from the announcement of the judges (MJ, Dr. J, Dominique, Vince Carter and Kobe Bryant) to the excitement generated by the team of Paul Pierce and Gerald Green from the Boston Celtics. Using props, Dee Brown's Uniform, and even defending Champion Nate Robinson- Green Slammed his way to history, winning the contest hands down.

After Saturday night, we boarded the buses for the Post-game party at the Palms, the hotel and Casino owned by the Maloof brothers, who also own the Sacramento Kings. Here our company expanded to include Nicolas Caniez, (NBA), Chris Haggerty (Champion) Pete (Champion) Tony Pessok (UNK) and our friends from AS FIFAA. Guests were treated to great food, a great concert (Goo Goo Dolls) and good spirits. Later we made it to the party in the tent next door, and eventually, somehow, back to our hotel. Sadly, I have no photographs from these events, as there were (wisely) no cameras allowed.

 

Sunday morning started early, with an 8:00 breakfast in the Venetian Hotel with Rob Millman from the NBA. We talked about his upcoming trip to Russia, about the basketball markets in our territories and the new relationship with Adidas and what it would mean for Europe. After breakfast Paul headed out to the airport, while Oleg Dikusar and I went to visit the Hoover Dam in a rented Mustang Convertible.

 

That night was the main event. Only thing was- I had a very hard time staying awake, and it took me two large cups of Starbuck's to do so. The All Star Game was a sleeper, from Wayne Newton's first verse of Viva Las Vegas (which I don't need to hear again, ever) to the awful process and predictable result of Kobe's MVP performance.

 

Still we got out of there before No. 24 was even given the trophy, and the party at the Tao (Venetian hotel) was bigger and better-attended than earlier parties. Players, Veterans, David Stern and (it is even rumored) Dennis Rodman all made appearances. Everyone was there, and it made the evening very interesting and even useful.

 

Getting Ready for the Anthems at All-Star Game All the events were played on Spalding Backboards!

Monday morning brought mayhem to an unprepared airport. As the NBA, Magic Show, Volleyball tournament and God knows who else headed to the airport, it quickly became clear that all passengers on domestic flights were in serious trouble. Luckily, our flight was at 6:00 pm, and we were given the heads' up by colleagues (Thanks Chris) who were already out there. As a result, we joined the line at about 12:30 pm, and just made registration before it closed. As it turned out, our flight was late anyway, and we flew through the night once again, arriving in New York around 4:00 am.

NBA All Star Weekend was over. Unfortunately many will remember it by the massive numbers of "Posse" and party-seekers who showed up and demonstrated a colossal lack of respect for others there to enjoy the event and the city of Las Vegas. The NBA and the city of New Orleans should be more prepared to address both this and the travel issue before the next All Star Game.