CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – The NBA’s All-Star celebration returns to Cleveland for a third time this weekend.
The 1981 and 1997 All-Star Games were played at the Richfield Coliseum and Gund Arena, now Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, respectively.
Cleveland was awarded the game following a $185 million facelift and expansion of the building, which originally opened in 1994.
“The All-Star Game being in your city is a big deal,” Cavs head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “The NBA throwing its biggest party here in Cleveland is a big deal. I believe these moments are about those individual guys and their accomplishments. We should highlight them in these moments, and not take away from that. Our goal is always to help guys improve, and we’ll give them all the things necessary that we can. But in these moments, we should really focus on their accomplishments and all the work that they’ve put in to get to where they are.”
This is the third time the NBA will mark a milestone in Cleveland.
The ’81 game celebrated the NBA’s 35th anniversary, ’97 the 50th anniversary that included the Top 50 players in league history and this year will be the 75th anniversary celebration.
“This is truly on the global stage,” Cavs CEO Len Komoroski said in an interview with Bull and Fox Monday afternoon on 92.3 The Fan. “All-Star weekend, upwards of two billion people will see either broadcasts or social or digital media about this game – all centered on Cleveland.”
Listen to the full interview below:
Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse will host the main events on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
The Wolstein Center, a few blocks away on the campus of Cleveland State University, will host the celebrity game Friday evening and All-Star practice Saturday morning as well as HBCU Classic between Morgan State and Howard Saturday afternoon.
Tower City is hosting the NBA Ice Buckets event for fans Friday and Saturday.
Public Hall is home to the NBA Crossover event.
“That’s the strength we have as a city,” Komorowski said. “We have this core of great facilities within close proximity and walking distance of each other.”
The NBA’s 75th anniversary will be commemorated throughout the weekend.
“The NBA is the greatest sports league in all of America,” Bickerstaff said. “And it’s because of the people who came before us that put us in this position…so we have to appreciate and respect those that came before us.”
Kevin Love, a five-time All-Star including the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons with the Cavs, hopes his younger teammates will soak in the atmosphere and wisdom from the game's greats.
“Without the legends that paved the way for all of us, we wouldn’t be able to have any of this,” Love said.
“I remember the 50th anniversary, seeing all o those people wearing the jackets and everything thinking about how cool that would be to see that.”
The hometown and resurgent Cavaliers, 35-22 and third in the Eastern Conference entering play Monday night, will be well represented all weekend.
Rookie forward Evan Mobley and sophomore guard Isaak Okoro will compete in the Rising Stars three-game mini tournament Friday night.
All-Star guard Darius Garland, All-Star center Jarrett Allen and Mobley will compete in the Skills Challenge on All-Star Saturday night.
Garland and Allen will cap off the weekend of festivities and play for Team LeBron in the 71st NBA All-Star Game Sunday night.
