Re-Cap: NBA All-Star Weekend (Las Vegas)

All Star Weekend 2007 in Las Vegas, Nevada not only brought out a multitude of people from the ages 18-35 from every major city across the country, it also brought about lawsuits and rumors of death.

During the weekend, a rumor of Earl "E-40" Stevens' death, while ghost riding his whip, ran rampant. "Mr. Stevens is alive and well in Las Vegas enjoying All-Star Weekend and has not been the victim of any shooting or accident," said E-40's rep, attorney Zvi B. Edelman, after rumors began circulating over the weekend, while the possibility of Jay-Z attending a party at Club Ice was slim to none.

Sean "Jay-z" Carter filed a temporary restraining order in a federal court on Friday (February 16) to shut down a Las Vegas party using his likeness to promote the event. Promoters for Club Ice had flyers circulating the web and the streets of Vegas for the said party; when in actuality the Jigga Man threw his own party that same night at the Venetian Hotel's Tao Nightclub, where Dipset's Jim Jones was turned away. An employee for Club Ice says they have a signed contract with one of the VPs of Roc-A-fella Records, the person was paid in full, and the party went on as planned on Saturday night. No word of whether Jay-z's threat to shut the party down kept partygoers from going.

With the help of the NBA Cares foundation, artists like Bow Wow and Chamillionaire gave back -- through autographs and stellar performances -- to crowds of screaming young kids at the NBA Jam Session events. Performances throughout the weekend also included Jamie Foxx on his Unpredictable Tour stop, Grammy winner Mary J. Blige, Ciara, Kelis and the new reigning queen of Las Vegas, Toni Braxton. In all of his pimpocity, Katt Williams brought down the house at the Hard Rock Hotel.

Fans in attendance at the NBA Celebrity Game had no idea they were getting a preview of what was to come on Sunday at the Thomas & Mack Center. Like in the actual All-Star game, the star-studded West Coast team -- made up of non-coaching Greg Anthony from ESPN, Jamie Foxx, James Denton ("Desperate Housewives"), Reggie Bush (NFL's New Orleans Saints), Bow Wow, Jamie Kennedy ("Blowin UP"), Tony Potts (co-anchor of "Access Hollywood"), Nick Cannon (Wild N' Out), Jonathan Silverman ("In Case of Emergency") and Tamika Catchings (WNBA's Indiana Fever) -- dominated the whole game. The East Coast team, being coached by Tim Legler, displayed a lackluster performance. The opening jump for the ball was between Reggie Bush (West) and Michael Clarke Duncan (East). Tip off going to Bush.

[EAST TEAM: David Arquette ("In Case of Emergency"), Michael Clarke Duncan ("The Green Mile"), Nelly, Kevin Frazier (host of "Entertainment Tonight"), Donald Faison ("Scrubs"), Taye Diggs ("Rent"), Bobby Flay ("Throwdown with Bobby Flay"), Carrot Top (comedian), Katie Smith (WNBA's Detroit Shock)]

During the game, there were trades and also an impromptu performance from the one and only Wayne Newton, who knew "These Boots Are Made For Walking" had a comedic element.

Donald Faison ("Scrubs") was traded to the West because of an air ball Jaime Kennedy ("Blowin' Up") disputed as a pass. "He thought I shot an air ball, but it was a pass to Silverman," said Kennedy after finding out Greg Anthony (West Coach) traded him for the Scrubs star. Reggie Bush told ESPN this would probably be his last Celebrity Game after making one of the best shots of the second half, a shot that resulted in him hoppling off the court. He didn't sprain his ankle, but simply turned it. The game ended with a blow out from the West, 40-21. The NBA Celebrity game MVP was the West's Tony Potts, co-anchor of "Access Hollywood." He scored 14 points, and Bow Wow showed his skills off with 8 points.

On the party front, the award goes to Jermaine Durpri and Nelly for a second year. Despite the reinforcement from the National Guard ,securing the Aladdin Hotel where the parties were held, party goers had a great time. Unlike most parties during such events, attendees didn't experience any price gauging. Ticket prices were $125.00 as stated by Ticketmaster and tickets being sold at the door. Performances from T.I, Trina, Nelly and a host of others were worth every penny. The Party Man himself, Diddy, kept it to an entourage of one rolling to his Press Play party at the Ice House with super producer Will.i.am. Diddy and DJ S&S may have rolled up in the party with a New York state of mind, but left there with a new appreciation for the West Coast. Seeing the sea of people go crazy when The Game's "One Blood" and Mac Dre tracks came on, had Diddy screaming from the VIP. He had to question who knew how to party best -- New Yorkers or those of us on the West.

Unfortunately the weekend didn't end without incident. As previously reported by Ballerstatus.com, G-Unit's Young Buck and Black Wall Street boss man, The Game engagedm in a stare-down with an exchange of "N---- what you want to do?" from their respective entourages (see "The Game, Young Buck Dodge Near Altercation In Las Vegas"). No fights jumped off, but blogs throughout the web have fans perplexed about if taking the grown man route and keeping it a verbal spar effects the two stars' "gangsta."

Not only were there hundreds of arrests, two people were killed -- one being a shooting victim and the other being run over by a vehicle. All in all, Las Vegas made for a wonderful experience, great shopping and partying until daybreak. But, the city was clearly not ready for the amount of people that came out. Maybe the powers that be in Vegas should hold off on hosting events of this magnitude until construction is near completion and to find a respect for the spending power of the once shunned hip-hop dollar.

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