Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2007 | 7:02 a.m.
Compiled by Rob Miech, Ron Kantowski and Brian Hilderbrand
Where it might be possible to see NBA-ers - or another professional athlete or legend, or two - during the NBA All-Star Week ...
The Palms (casino floor)
Phoenix Suns swing man and former University of Michigan Fab Fiver Jalen Rose has been wont to throw the bones, while wearing a New Orleans Jazz throwback Pete Maravich jersey, at the craps tables here. He isn't just looking to make some quick bucks, either; he'll stay for hours. Miami Dolphins linebacker Zack Thomas favors the $25 blackjack tables.
N9NE (restaurant in the Palms)
Ron Artest of the Sacramento Kings has been spotted a few times. He's gracious and affable, even approachable for camera-phone photographs. Say cheese, Ron! Also, heading from plates of filet mignon and calamari to ghostbar, five-time NBA champion Ron Harper. Paul Hornung (Notre Dame and the Green Bay Packers) favors dining at the bar and gladly signs autographs.
Moon (Palms)
Scottie Pippen, the six-time NBA champion and seven-time All-Star, has frequented the newest tower of the Maloof family's property.
Rain (nightclub in the Palms)
Once in a blue moon, Shaquille O'Neal strolls into a balcony suite with his posse. The Miami Heat star has been injured, too, so maybe he'll beat the rest of the fraternity to Las Vegas.
What: NBA All-Star Jam Session
Where: Mandalay Bay South Convention Center
When: 4 to 10 p.m. Feb. 15-16; 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Feb. 17, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Feb. 18-19
Ticket prices: $20 for adults; $12 for children 3 to 12 years old, senior citizens and military personnel; free for children 2 and under
On sale: Now at Mandalay Bay Box Office, Ticketmaster locations in Las Vegas, ticketmaster.com and (800) 462-2849
Tough tickets: Any event at the Thomas & Mack Center - Rookie All-Star Game on Feb. 16; Dunk, 3-point shooting and skill contests, Feb. 17; All-Star Game, Feb. 18.
Pure (nightclub in Caesars Palace)
Chauncey Billups (Detroit Pistons), Antoine Walker (Miami Heat) and Jared Jeffries (New York Knicks), among many others, have bumped and grinded in this popular night spot.
Hard Rock (casino floor)
Luke Walton of the Los Angeles Lakers and Richard Jefferson of the New Jersey Nets, instant peas in a pod when they met at the University of Arizona, are an entertaining duo when tossing the dice on craps tables at this hot spot.
Flamingo (casino floor)
Dennis Rodman, who led the NBA in rebounds for seven consecutive seasons, might be seen throwing his tattoos - or dice - around here or several other casinos. Take your pick, especially since he'll have a Bad Boy team in town All-Star weekend to play the Harlem Globetrotters at the Orleans Arena.
Mandalay Bay (high stakes room)
Fortunately, the high rollers' area is visible to us commoners and other passers-by. This is where Charles "Chuckles" Barkley can be spotted, at any given time - or any given hour - putting as much on one spin of the roulette wheel as us regulars make in a week. Possible: to see Chuckles teaching Tiger Woods the fine art of not tipping like a pauper. Impossible: to see Michael Jordan teaching Chuckles a thing or two about high-stakes gambling; MJ has way too much discretion to be spotted, gambling, by anyone in public.
P.F. Chang's (in Aladdin)
Chris Mullin, the executive vice president for basketball operations for the Golden State Warriors and a five-time All-Star as a player, breaking bread (er, sharing pan-fried shrimp dumplings and Mongolian beef) with members of his front office.
Light (in Bellagio)
Jermaine O'Neal of the Indiana Pacers attempted to get into this hip club, but his attire did not meet dress-code standards. Look for him to wear the right stuff this time around. Also, Las Vegas resident and new Toronto Blue Jays hitter Frank Thomas enjoys an occasional sitting at the $100-minimum blackjack tables at this casino. But he keeps his head on a swivel, always on the lookout for pesky autograph-seekers or other intruders.
Wynn (casino floor)
We hear Lloyd Daniels - one of Jerry Tarkanian's more-notorious recruits at UNLV who never played for the Rebels - pops up once in a while. Drinking a draft at the center bar? Don't be surprised if the guy trying to start a conversation next to you is Daniels. "Swee' Pea" played five seasons for six NBA teams
- RM
All-Star tickets
If you're an average NBA fan in Las Vegas seeking a ticket to next month's NBA All-Star game, forget about it.
In fact, even if you're the most passionate NBA fan in town and you don't have a close relationship with one of the big shots in the league office - like son, or attorney, for instance - you can forget about it, too.
Finding a ticket to the NBA All-Star Game is like finding a needle in Julius Erving's Afro when he was playing for the Nets.
It's darn near impossible.
Matt Bourne of the NBA office said All-Star tickets traditionally are distributed among league executives, team executives, the league's television, marketing and merchandise partners and the working press.
The host franchise - in this case, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority - also receives a block of tickets. Sometimes, one or two of these wind up in the hands of a local car dealer. Then if you test drive a Hummer, you might get your name added to the 10,000 already in the fishbowl when they get around to drawing for the grand prize.
Otherwise, unless you are hooked up like the coal car to a steam locomotive, there are few All-Star ticket options.
"There's not a public sale," Bourne said.
The best bet for local fans is the NBA All-Star Jam Session.
"There will be player appearances; all the All-Stars will be there for autograph sessions," he said. "Your chance of seeing somebody up close is better at the Jam Session than it is at the game itself."
Unless you have $21,999.99 floating around your sofa cushions. While that won't get you within shouting distance of Kobe and Shaq - even if he wasn't injured - StubHub.com's top-price ticket package will get you a seat in Row W (a long way from courtside) at the Thomas & Mack Center. According to StubHub, that will also get you into the rookie game, slam dunk and 3-point shooting companion events.
The cheapest ticket on StubHub, in the Thomas & Mack's nosebleed section, goes for $1,470. For that price, they should throw in the Kleenex.
Despite the demand for tickets, Bourne said the NBA probably would not move the game to a domed football arena, a la the NCAA Final Four.
In 1996, the NBA played the All-Star Game at the Alamodome in San Antonio, and attracted a crowd of 36,037. Bourne said, if he had to guess, not all those fans went home happy.
"Just because you have a bigger facility doesn't mean fans are going to enjoy the experience," he said. "Basketball is meant to be played in a finite space. When you keep the arena small and intimate, the viewing angles are better."
- RK
Full court on volunteers
If you don't have a ticket and if you haven't already signed up as a volunteer, it is unlikely that you'll be getting in to see the 2007 NBA All-Star Game. The NBA sought 2,000 local volunteers to help out with the All-Star Game and associated activities and quickly met its goal .
- BH
Jam Session activities
The NBA All-Star Jam Session at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center is designed to let locals get a peek of the players. There are appearances and autograph sessions by NBA players and legends and WNBA players. There are all-star practices and all-star games, although featuring celebrities and stars from the NBA's minor or D-League.
There are also interactive events so fans can dunk (with the help of bungee cords), shoot 3-pointers and compare their hands and feet to models of their favorite players.
Last year, the Jam Session in Houston drew 120,500 fans.
Balloting
Fans can vote online through Sunday at www.nba.com.
They pick the starters, who will be announced Jan. 25. The coaches pick the rest of the squad, which will be announced Feb. 1.
Yao Ming of Houston is barely edging out LeBron James as the top vote-getter. Note that Allen Iverson is listed on the East ballot and would have been a starter if he hadn't been traded from Philadelphia to Denver; now he trails Kobe Bryant and Tracy McGrady in the West voting.
Here are the leaders in the fan balloting:
EAST
Forwards
LeBron James (Cleveland) 1,774,281
Chris Bosh (Toronto) 684,620
Jermaine O'Neal (Indiana) 621,476
Grant Hill (Orlando) 455,018
Paul Pierce (Boston) 442,393
Guards
Dwyane Wade (Miami) 1,371,850
Vince Carter (New Jersey) 1,002,709
Gilbert Arenas (Washington) 788,249
Jason Kidd (New Jersey) 573,104
Stephon Marbury (New York) 383,204
Centers
Shaquille O'Neal (Miami) 1,143,904
Dwight Howard (Orlando) 978,007
Ben Wallace (Chicago) 519,871
WEST
Forwards
Kevin Garnett (Minnesota) 1,068,168
Tim Duncan (San Antonio) 1,025,812
Dirk Nowitzki (Dallas) 884,160
Carmelo Anthony (Denver) 870,465
Shane Battier (Houston) 640,238
Guards
Kobe Bryant (L.A. Lakers) 1,536,556
Tracy McGrady (Houston) 1,331,511
Allen Iverson (Denver) 1,300,248
Steve Nash (Phoenix) 992,885
Manu Ginobili (San Antonio) 376,185
Centers
Yao Ming (Houston) 1,775,413
Amar Stoudemire (Phoenix) 727,298
Erick Dampier (Dallas) 283,103
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