By Gabriel Lorenzo
The city that never sleeps was up all night in anticipation of this NBA season’s All-Star Weekend. This year, fans the world over will get to experience the event February 13 in the heart of pro-basketball, New York City.
Former NBA players Nate “Tiny” Archibald and New York Knicks John Starks handed out free tickets to the first 100 fans on December 5. John Starks stood outside of Madison Square Garden with tickets for the NBA All-Star practice while Nate Archibald was outside of the Barclays Center with tickets to the BBVA Compass Rising Star Challenge.
Fans gathered the night before, hoping to secure a spot to receive tickets.
“It means a lot whenever you can have the NBA All-Star Game here in New York, the mecca of basketball,” said Starks. “We haven’t had it here (All-Star Weekend) since 1998, and the city has transformed since then with a new arena in the Barclays center.” Starks said he was also swept up by the event. “I’m not sure I’m going to sleep,” he said. “It’s going to be a busy time for me.”
Brooklyn native Chris Nicholson got a ticket to the celebrity game at MSG and then hopped the train to Barclays to get a ticket from Hall Of Famer Nate Archibald. “It’s a good thing that he came here and showed love to the community,” Nicholson said of Archibald. “I didn’t know he was from the Bronx. To meet one of the great legends, that’s what’s up right there.”
Nate Archibald said the city was a perfect host for the events. “New York to me is the Mecca of Basketball,” said Archibald. “Most of the players who play in the NBA are from here. New York was about survival. I am still a train and bus guy. This city has more guys in the Top 50 Hall of Fame than anywhere else. There are only two NBA top 50 players from the Bronx. You have Dolph Schayes, and Nate Archibald. But we have players like Bernard King, Connie Hawkins, Lenny Wilkins, Billy Cunningham, and Bob Cousy from Queens. I think it’s a special treat for NYC.”
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