The 2011 PBL All-Star Game was the first all-star game in the history of the Professional Basketball League, held on March 26, 2011, in Nizhny Novgorod at the Trade Unions Sports Palace.[1] The event became a significant page in the league's short history: Nizhny Novgorod was chosen as the first host city of such an event.[1]

Format and Result

The game featured two symbolic teams: a team of the league's Russian basketball players and a team called PBL Stars, made up of the best imports. The Russian players won with a score of 141:120. The game's most valuable player was forward Sergey Monya.[3] However, the organizers had initially staked everything not on sporting intrigue but on a spectacular show.[1]

Participants

Stars from several PBL clubs gathered for the event. From CSKA came forward Andrey Vorontsevich, center Aleksandr Kaun, guard Trajan Langdon, and point guard Evgeniy Voronov, along with veteran Ramunas Siskauskas. At that time Voronov was playing for Moscow's Dynamo — he moved to PBC CSKA only at the end of the 2010/11 season.[4] Among the imports, Red Wings forward Gerald Green stood out — the winner of the slam dunk contest at the 2007 NBA All-Star Game and one of the highest-jumping players in world basketball. Among the guests was also 1972 Olympic champion Ivan Edeshko. Lokomotiv-Kuban coach Kestutis Kemzura represented the coaching staff.[1] Photographs from the game also show players Jamont Gordon and Aleksandr Kaun.[2]

Atmosphere and Organization

The Trade Unions Sports Palace, which, besides BC Nizhny Novgorod, also hosts home games of the hockey club Torpedo, staged the game without removing the plastic hockey boards. The central stands were filled to capacity despite ticket prices of 600 to 1,500 rubles; the cheaper side seats (150 rubles) stood empty. Spectators gathered in the arena a full hour before the start of the show, scheduled for 5:00 p.m.[1]

The climax of the program was the slam dunk contest, in which Gerald Green demonstrated his signature style of dunking. Meanwhile, forward Vorontsevich took on the role of reporter: armed with a video camera, he interviewed colleagues right on the runway of Nizhny Novgorod's «Strigino» airport and at the hotel where the delegation of participants was staying.[1]

Links

Sources

  1. nn-basket.ru — Forward Sergey Monya was named Most Valuable Player of the 2011 PBL All-Star Game.
  2. rus.team — At the time of the game, defender Evgeniy Voronov was playing for Moscow's Dynamo; he moved to PBC CSKA only at the end of the 2010/11 season. (archive)
  1. bckhimki.com — Novgorod Nizhny. Class — the highest! The first PBL All-Star Game took place in the city on the Volga
  2. ru.wikinews.org — File:Jamont Gordon and Sasha Kaun at all-star PBL game 2011.JPG (archive)