Last Updated on February 14, 2009 7:00 pm by Anthony Rome
All-Star Game Free Picks
The 2009 NBA All-Star Game takes place this Sunday, February 15 live from Phoenix, so let’s hand out some free picks on this year’s big game.
Slam Dunk Contest
It’s tough to judge these contests without knowing what tricks these players have up their sleeves, but if you look back on previous Slam Dunk events, you might be able to gain an edge. First and foremost, this year’s favorite is the Magic’s Dwight Howard, who won last year’s Slam Dunk Contest. We’ll stick with the former champ as our pick, but we’ll offer a sleeper: the Knicks’ Nate Robinson. The Knicks have had small success in the Slam Dunk contest, winning twice since the event’s conception, including in 2006.
Free Pick: Dwight Howard -150, Magic.
3-Point Contest
We’re not going to over think this one – go with the Spurs’ Roger Mason, who has a stellar 3-point percentage of .449 so far this season. Oddsmakers from online sports book Sportsbook.com are also giving him generous odds at +550, so he seems like a good value pick. If you want to play it safe, just go with the Raptors’ Jason Kapono, who is paying off at even odds. That’s hard to pass up.
Free Pick: Roger Mason +550, Spurs.
2009 NBA All-Star Game MVP
As much as we like LeBron James winning the All-Star Game MVP Award again, we’re going to play the trends. While King James (who is favored to win the MVP Award again this year at +300) has won the award twice in the last three years, no player – not Michael Jordan nor Magic Johnson – has ever won the award in back-to-back years. So if you factor that little tidbit in, it’s easy to cross James off the board. The next best odds are Kobe Bryant at +400, but with the way the East has dominated the West of late (winning three of the last four years), we’re going to skip on Kobe, too. For our NBA All-Star Game MVP free pick, we’re going to go with a small sleeper in Dwayne Wade (Heat) at +500. We like the value, we like the trends and we like the pick. Hope you cash in.
Free Pick: Dwayne Wade +500, Heat
2009 NBA ALL-STAR GAME – PHOENIX – SUNDAY FEBRUARY 15 – PROP ODDS
2009 NBA All-Star Game Odds
Eastern Conference NA/NA
Western Conference NA/NA
Slam Dunk Contest
Dwight Howard (Magic) –150
JR Smith (Nuggets) +350
Nate Robinson (Knicks) +350
Rudy Fernandez (Blazers) +500
3-Point Shootout
Daequan Cook (Heat) +700
Danny Granger (Pacers) +400
Jason Kapono (Raptors) even
Mike Bibby (Hawks) +400
Rashard Lewis (Magic) +350
Roger Mason (Spurs) +550
Skills Challenge
Derrick Rose (Bulls) +200
Devin Harris (Nets) +200
Tony Parker (Spurs) +120
2009 All-Star Game MVP
Allen Iverson (Pistons) +1200
Amare Stoudemire (Suns) +600
Brandon Roy (Blazers) +1000
Chauncey Billups (Nuggets) +2000
Chris Paul (Hornets) +600
Danny Granger (Pacers) +2000
David West (Hornets) +3000
Devin Harris (Nets) +3000
Dirk Nowitzki (Mavs) +1000
Dwight Howard (Magic) +500
Dwyane Wade (Heat) +500
Joe Johnson (Hawks) +2500
Kevin Garnett (Celtics) +2000
Kobe Bryant (Lakers) +400
LeBron James (Cavs) +300
Mo Williams (Cavs) +2000
Paul Gasol (Lakers) +3000
Paul Pierce (Celtics) +2000
Rashard Lewis (Magic) +3000
Ray Allen (Celtics) +1200
Shaquille ONeal (Suns) +2000
Tim Duncan (Spurs) +2000
Tony Parker (Spurs) +2000
Yao Ming (Rockets) +2000
Player to Score The Most Points
Allen Iverson (Pistons) +1500
Amare Stoudemire (Suns) +500
Brandon Roy (Blazers) +1000
Chauncey Billups (Nuggets) +3000
Chris Paul (Hornets) +500
Danny Granger (Pacers) +2000
David West (Hornets) +3000
Devin Harris (Nets) +3000
Dirk Nowitzki (Mavs) +1000
Dwight Howard (Magic) +400
Dwyane Wade (Heat) +500
Joe Johnson (Hawks) +3000
Kevin Garnett (Celtics) +3000
Kobe Bryant (Lakers) +400
LeBron James (Cavs) +400
Mo Williams (Cavs) +3000
Paul Gasol (Lakers) +3000
Paul Pierce (Celtics) +2500
Rashard Lewis (Magic) +3000
Ray Allen (Celtics) +3000
Shaquille ONeal (Suns) +3000
Tim Duncan (Spurs) +3000
Tony Parker (Spurs) +2000
Yao Ming (Rockets) +3000
Player to Score The First Point of the Game
Allen Iverson (Pistons) +900
Amare Stoudemire (Suns) +500
Chris Paul (Hornets) +500
Dwight Howard (Magic) +375
Dwayne Wade (Heat) +500
Kevin Garnett (Celtics) +900
Kobe Bryant (Lakers) +400
LeBron James (Cavs) +400
Trim Duncan (Spurs) +900
Yao Ming (Rockets) +900
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Posted: 2/15/09 9:00AM ET