John Kim 
Los Angeles was the perfect stage for the star-studded event in all of professional sports. The city that invented the red carpet welcomed the 2011 NBA All-Stars with open arms (and a few playful boos for some of the Eastern Conference players) as the Staples Center opened its door for the weekend to hold the Rookie Challenge, 3-point shootout, Skills Challenge, Slam Dunk Contest, and of course, the 2011 NBA All-Star Game. Rosters on both sides were loaded with superstar talent with over half of the Eastern roster consisting of players from the Heat and Celtics. The Western Conference was no slouch either, led by 5-time champion Kobe Bryant, 3-time champion Tim Duncan, and the most exciting and ‘trending’ player in the league in Blake Griffin headlining the West roster.
The All-Star Game theme was once again a patriotic Red vs. Blue motif as the uniforms and signature sneakers all represented their respective conference’s colors. Starting on the East coast, Dwyane Wade debuted the all-new Air Jordan 2011 in White/Varsity Royal, LeBron James wore the LeBron 8 V/2 ‘All-Star’ in Treasure Blue, and Amare Stoudemire wore a new Air Max Fly By PE as well as a sweet new Zoom Huarache TR Mid PE colorway. The four Boston Celtics also caught our attention with some great Player Exclusives; Kevin Garnett wore a dazzling metallic silver PE of his Anta KG 1 signature, Rajon Rondo wore the Air Max 360 BB Low, Paul Pierce wore the Air Legacy 2 PE, and Ray Allen sported a gorgeous grey/white/blue PE of the Air Jordan 2011. Other notables included Joe Johnson’s Jordan Evolution ’85 PE, Derrick Rose’s adidas Rose Zero and adiRose 1.5 PE, and Dwight Howard’s Superbeast.
The Home Western Conference team did its best to counter the East’s barrage of kicks, led by ASG MVP Kobe Bryant’s Zoom Kobe VI ‘All-Star’, and Kevin Durant’s Zoom KD III. Jordan Brand’s two marquee athletes Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul wore All-Star colorways of their signature shoes – the Jordan Melo M7 and CP3.IV. Deron Williams sported a nice PE of the Zoom Hyperfuse Low, and Kevin Love wore the PEAK Relentless PE. However, the show may have been stolen by the electrifying Blake Griffin, who not only held his own in his first ever NBA All-Star Game appearance, but debuted the all new Nike Hyperdunk 2011 in the ‘10.0’ PE which features earthquake graphics. Continue reading for a full recap of the best kicks from the 2011 NBA All-Star Game and let us know which pair of kicks you liked best! via Yahoo!.
