2006 All-Star Weekend News
---
2006 All-Star Game
---
Eastern All-Stars: 103
Western All-Stars: 89
---
East Starters




L-R: Shaquille O'Neal, Jermain O'Neal, Tayshaun Prince, Dwayne Wade, Allen Iverson
East Bench






L-R: Andrew Bogut, Chris Webber, Paul Pierce, Morris Peterson, Gilbert Arenas, Ron Artest, Tyson Chandler
---
West Starters




L-R: Brad Miller, Kevin Garnett, Corey Maggette, Kobe Bryant, Sam Cassell
West Bench






L-R: Yao Ming, Elton Brand, Tracy McGrady, Ray Allen, Damon Stoudamire, Dirk Nowitzki, Kenyon Martin
---
Tonight's All-Star Game was memorable for several reasons. Firstly, and most importantly, Allen Iverson of the Philadelphia 76ers won his third All-Star MVP award, 2nd in a row, with a triple-double of 22 points, 12 assists and 10 steals.
Secondly, it saw the usual All-Stars being outplayed by their new team mates. Kevin Garnett was a shadow of his usual self as he managed only 45 points and 6 rebounds. On the other hand, veteran guard Sam Cassell grabbed the game-high 32 points and led the West through the entire game.
There were some heads left scratching at this years selection. Firstly, there was no place for Tim Duncan or Steve Nash in the West side. Also, Houston's own Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming found themselves on the bench. To add to the West's problems, Dirk Nowitzki didn't even play! Although, that was because of a minor injury suffered in the warm up.
The East were weakened by the injury to sure-fire starter LeBron James, but Tayshaun Prince filled his shoes rather adequately. The nost notable absences on the East side where the New Jersey pair of Jason Kidd and Vince Carter, as well as Detroit's Chauncey Billups and Toronto's Chris Bosh, who both will have to wait another year for their first All-Star game.
The game itself was not the best in history. It suffered from several lull points in the game, with deserving MVP Allen Iverson being the only one who managed to ignite the game. He found himself in foul trouble throughout the game, but still managed to put up an amazing triple double. He linked up well with Dwyane Wade in the East backcourt. Perhaps the most notable sight in the game was Wade connecting on one of many Iverson alley-oops.
The West were also carried by their backcourt, with Kobe Bryant and Sam Cassell combining for 57 points. They also had the advantage of being able to bring Tracy McGrady up off the bench. T-Mac led a West 8-0 scoring run in the second quarter to tie the game, which included a tomahawk dunk and an impressive three-point play.
The game normally gets competitive in the fourth quarter but really it seemed to die out before the end of the third. The East established a ten-point lead and extended it further when Shaq woke up and realised he had less than ten points! He finished with 15 for the night.
Iverson seemed to have the MVP award locked in from the first quarter, although Sam Cassell gave him a run for his money by almost bringing the West back into contention single-handedly. In the 4th he connected on 2 back-to-back 3-pointers and then set up Kevin Garnett for a monster dunk that manged to elicit a response from the crowd.
Iverson, along with Andre Iguodala who won the MVP award in the Rookie Challenge game, can take his trophy back to Philadelphia with the knowledge that he was the only real All-Star on display tonight.
---
2006 All-Star Game MVP
Allen Iverson (East)
Points: 22
Rebounds: 0
Assists: 12
Steals: 10
Blocks: 0