Gordon Monson: Love it or loathe it, the NBA All-Star Weekend circus has arrived

For those who have watched a gazillion NBA All-Star games over the past gazillion years, it’s easy to have burned out on the whole affair.

Yeah, it was cool back in the day, when Michael Jordan was putting on his show, when Magic and Barkley and Karl and Kobe did likewise, when dunks were a big deal, when Larry Bird was asking participants in the locker room before the 3-point shooting contest which of you suckers is going to finish second, when competition in the game seemed if not fierce, at least fun.

You might have heard that Salt Lake City, in conjunction with the NBA, is hosting the event in the days ahead. That all the stars, the healthy ones, are coming to town to engage in a spectacle that has transformed into what some might consider a celebration of basketball and what others see as an overcooked commercial for the league.

The game itself is just part of so much hoop hubbub.

Having been part of the crowd that has seen so many of these deals in the past, I’m teetering on the fine line between jumping in on the celebration and loathing it. The Jazz and their minions certainly are feeling and trying to spread the enthusiasm. But I’ve got a devil on one shoulder and an angel on the other, turning my head around, back and forth, listening to both.

On the one side, the All-Star game in many ways represents, highlights, what some say is distasteful about pro basketball. Guys on the court trying their self-centered best to show off, to stroke their own egos with moves and passes and shots that blow past comical, straight to cartoonish.

Here’s the thing: There’s nothing this year’s batch of stars can do, not on the positive side, that can or will outdo what we’ve already seen in previous years. Even a shooter the caliber of Steph Curry can’t out-Curry himself. I know, I know, he’s injured and out for this iteration, but you get the idea.

What makes basketball at its top level thrilling isn’t just the moves and shots we’ve already seen, ridiculous though they might be, it’s the meaning attached to those moves and shots. It’s the competition wrapped up in them.

The All-Star game often lacks that last part. How much meat and meaning is there on the court in all of this? Not a lot. It’s something apart from what basketball was meant to be. It’s not meat, it’s … what, Cheez-Whiz? It’s a mountain of Cheez-Whiz.

That’s what the devil whispers.

What the angel says is this: “Hey, lighten up, man.”

This shindig is a show. It’s not designed to be taken too seriously. You’re not going to see any version of Pete Carril’s old offense out on the floor. You’re going to see athleticism and acrobat-ism, not five passes for the ideal shot before the clock runs down to nothing.

And defense? Ha. We’re here to have a good time.

And beyond that, there’s all the other stuff associated with Sunday’s centerpiece — the outreach to the community, the extension of good will, the good feel to the weekend in its totality. The list of All-Star events is vast.

Pay no attention to the fact that tickets to the actual game will cost you a fistful of paychecks and maybe part of your kids’ college funds. Pppfffww. You’re building memories here.

You can buy entrance to all sorts of happenings — to the All-Star Celebrity game at the Huntsman Center, to the NBA Rising Stars event at the Viv, to an All-Stars practice at the Huntsman, to the HBCU Classic at the Huntsman, to NBA All-Star Saturday Night, to the Skills Challenge, to the 3-Point Shootout, to the Dunk Contest, all at Vivint, to the NBA G League Next-Up game at the Viv, to NBA Crossover at the Salt Palace, to the NBA EXP Lounge, to NBA Legend Meet and Greets, to a Pitbull concert, to the Exclusive Playmaker Afterparty, to a PB&J Brunch with famous chefs, to the NBA Mascot Buffet Breakfast with photo ops.

This ain’t your standard-issue mid-February event in Utah.

As mentioned, it’ll cost you a load of cash, but it’s been 30 years since the All-Star game has been here, who knows when it will come back. Before the Jazz win a title? OK, the devil added that last part.

And there’s some genuine good-cause elements mixed in.

Five days of what the league calls “social impact and youth basketball events that will unify communities through service, philanthropy and teaching the values of the game of basketball.” It is said that the NBA and the NBA Players Association will combine to contribute “more than $3 million to the Utah and HBCU communities.”

Further, Team LeBron and Team Giannis will collectively donate up to a million dollars to local youth and family-serving organizations. A release says Team LeBron will play for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Utah, Team Giannis will play for Raise the Future, an outfit that benefits kids in foster care.

The NBPA Foundation will also contribute funds to reducing mental-health stigma and increasing access to mental-health services.

In addition, substantial amounts of contributions will be raised during many of the aforementioned events, including donations for a learn and play center and other upgrades at a South Salt Lake elementary school. Also, there’s an All-Star day of service, including hundreds of volunteers, that is scheduled to aid in all manner of service projects in Utah.

Don’t tell the state Legislature, but there are events planned to help LBGTQ+ youth and young adults, as well as “sensory bags” given to those with sensory needs, and a clinic put on for wheelchair-bound young people who like to play basketball.

There are also events and initiatives to help Black entrepreneurs, diverse-owned businesses in Utah, to educate residents about environmental issues here, to bolster a range of educational causes, and more activities for youngsters to learn about basketball and how it can improve emotional and physical wellbeing.

And a handful of other workshops meant to accomplish everything from educating youth coaches to encouraging girls to hoop it up to addressing social issues to … well, you get the idea.

The devil says it’s all a big promotion for the NBA, the overpriced main event of which is a tired exercise that showcases and emphasizes the wrong things about the game.

The angel admits that parts of the game are overdone, to the point of excess, but all of it combined, while offering great PR and adding revenue to league coffers, also does a whole lot of good.

Lighten up, man, it’s fun.

Ultimately, a gazillion games in, we’ll go with the angel on this one.