Each player on the losing team earned only $25,000 while the players on the winning team walked home with $100,000. The winning team also got to donate $350,000 to the captain’s charity of choice, and the losing team got to donate $150,000. LeBron James’ charity of choice was After School All-Stars Los Angeles, and Stephen Curry chose Brotherhood Crusade.

The game started off with a hilarious announcement of the starting line-ups by Kevin Hart, with the Canadian National Anthem sung by the Barenaked Ladies. But the most notable part of the pregame show was the National Anthem sung by Fergie. She gave it a twist with a jazzy feel and it could have sounded good; but the fact that it was Fergie, and the fact that it was live in front of millions of people, made it the laughing stock of the All-Star Game.

For the first time, there was a sense of competition during the All-Star Game. It didn’t seem like a dunk contest and it played like an actual game. It was no longer the Eastern Conference vs. the Western Conference. It was like school yard ball with captains choosing teams. Many players who haven’t gotten to play together were able to play on the same team, which also helped add to the competition. It was the first time that a player hasn’t scored more than 30 points in an All-Star Game. Team Steph lead for most of the game and we all thought that his team was going to take home the $100,000 per player. But in the last six minutes, both teams were trying their hardest to prove that they were the team that deserved to win. Team LeBron was the one to prove that they were the best, and James was there to prove that he’s still the best in the NBA at age 33.

Photo courtesy of The Ringer

No one expects a lot of defense to be played or a lot of effort to be shown in an All-
Star game, but a record-breaking 196-point display by the Western All-Stars was not expected either. Granted, the West had 193 until reigning NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Steph Curry hit a 40-foot buzzer-beating three pointer. The final score was 196-173 in favor of the Western Conference All-Stars. The total points scored were 369, remarkably one point shy of the NBA record.

Russell Westbrook, a point guard for the Oklahoma City Thunder, took home the All-Star MVP honors after putting up 31 points, dishing out five assists, and grabbing eight rebounds. This is his second consecutive All-Star MVP, making him the second player in NBA history to get the award two years in a row after Bob Petit. Paul George of the Indiana Pacers had the highest scoring output with 41 points for the Eastern Conference. George was just one point shy of tying Wilt Chamberlain’s All-Star game scoring record set in 1962.

The main focus of the night was worldwide celebrity and basketball icon Kobe Bryant. Bryant declared at the beginning of the season that this, his 20th NBA season, would be his last. Kobe received not only a standing ovation from both the Eastern and Western conference All-Star squads, but also got the loudest and longest of the Toronto fans as he was the last starter announced for the game. Magic Johnson sent Kobe into the game with a phenomenal farewell along with a highlight video thanking him for his great years with the Lakers and recognizing him as one of the greatest ever to take the floor. Bryant finished his final All-Star game with 10 points, seven assists and six rebounds.

With dunks galore, players having fun both on and off the court and a memorable sendoff for a future Hall of Famer, this All-Star game was definitely something to remember. Kudos to Toronto for hosting and doing well at it.