All-Stars of all ages put on quite a show

Mike Nadel

Monday, Feb. 10, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

CLEVELAND -- Wilt, Hondo and the Big O stood in the spotlight. Magic, Moses and the Big E waved to the adoring masses. The Pearl, Tiny and Dr. J soaked in the cheers.

The best dunkers and dribblers, shooters and setup men, rebounders and rejectors -- 50 years worth of them -- threatened to turn the NBA All-Star game into an afterthought.

Then Glen Rice, Michael Jordan and 22 other stars from this era put on a memorable show that featured wonderful individual performances, eye-popping aerial maneuvers and a sensational comeback.

Rice broke two scoring records to win MVP honors, Jordan had the event's first triple-double, and the East rallied from a 23-point deficit to beat the West 132-120 Sunday.

"I was very nervous. I haven't been nervous in these situations in a long time," said Jordan, who had 14 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists for his first triple-double since coming out of retirement 23 months ago.

"I sat back and looked at all the great players who paved the road for myself and others who play today," the Chicago Bulls star said. "It's a great feeling to go out there and pay gratitude to them. I was in awe pretty much the whole time."

Jordan, himself one of the 50 greatest players ever, was introduced first for the emotion-packed halftime ceremony. He was followed by 46 others, as only Shaquille O'Neal, Jerry West and the late Pete Maravich didn't show.

Wilt Chamberlain entered Gund Arena and stood alongside former rival Bill Russell. Elgin Baylor and Julius Erving, high-flying predecessors to Jordan and today's even younger skywalkers, drew loud ovations from the crowd of 20,562. The lovefest continued for the likes of Larry Bird and Magic Johnson, Isiah Thomas and George Mikan, and so on and so on.

Then halftime ended and Rice put on a show of his own.

The Charlotte sharpshooter scored a record 20 points in the third quarter and made it 24 in the second half for another All-Star game mark as the East completed the rally that began at the end of the first half.

Rice, an eighth-year forward, can't yet claim to be one of the top 50 players ever. But for one 11-minute stretch Sunday, he was the best hired gun in the world.

"It was a great event they had going out there," said Rice, who finished with 26 points. "It was enjoyable to look at the guys you've always admired. I think most of the guys were in awe, willing to step up and see what kind of path these guys had laid for us, trying to maintain that status."

Rice did just that, hitting three 3-pointers in a 49-second span early in the third quarter as the East pulled away. Jordan was only 5-of-14 from the field, but he sparked the 27-7 run that got the East close at the end of the first half, slamming home a missed free throw.

Vin Baker, Christian Laettner, Penny Hardaway and Terrell Brandon also played major roles for the East, while Gary Payton and Latrell Sprewell led the way for the West.

Injured All-Stars O'Neal, Charles Barkley, Alonzo Mourning, Clyde Drexler and Patrick Ewing weren't even missed. In fact, their absences provided opportunities for others to show their stuff.

"I can sit here and say I represent young people," said Minnesota's Kevin Garnett, at 20 the kid among All-Stars. "We like to run and gun and alley-oop and holler and jump up and down."

Former greats Chamberlain and Hal Greer witnessed all the alley-ooping and hollering. They also witnessed Rice breaking their longstanding All-Star records. Chamberlain set the mark for points in a half, with 23 in 1962 (Tom Chambers had tied it in 1987). Greer held the record for most points in a quarter, 19 in 1968.

Rice was too hot for either Chamberlain or Greer to keep their records.

"I just wanted him to keep making them," Hardaway said. "I wanted him to push the lead out so far that they couldn't come back. And that's what he did."

The West led 53-30 midway through the second quarter. But led by Jordan, Hardaway, Laettner, Scottie Pippen and Grant Hill, the East pulled to 60-57 by halftime.

The most memorable moment came with 43 seconds left. Hill missed a free throw and Jordan, who had been standing next to Mitch Richmond near the 3-point arc, streaked in, glided past flat-footed Hakeem Olajuwon and Shawn Kemp, and power-jammed the ball through the basket.

"I was just having a little chat with Mitch, trying to time the move and my opportunity to see if I could catch the rebound," Jordan said. "It's kind of a negative thought process, expecting my teammate to miss when I really wanted him to make it. But it felt like a great time to do it."

Jordan wasn't finished.

Last year's All-Star MVP entered the fourth quarter with 12 points, nine rebounds and six assists. He got his 10th rebound early in the period, but his 10th assist didn't come until 3:51 remained when he set up a layup for Pippen, his Chicago teammate and fellow top-50 selection.

"What's really incredible was that Oscar Robertson averaged a triple-double over an entire season, yet he never had one in an All-Star game," Jordan said. "I couldn't make any jump shots, so I had no choice but to rebound and pass."