2012 NBA D-League All-Star Game: The Only Event In Which Halftime Is Important

There are quite a few events going on in Orlando during the annual NBA All-Star Weekend, If everything goes as planned, the majority of the happenings probably won't be terribly exciting. The 2012 D-League All-Star game is one of those events, but it's still worth tuning in for a couple of reasons.

The main reason to watch, however, isn't for the actual game: it is, as Tom Ziller referred to in the link above, the halftime show. No, the NBA Development League didn't go out and find the D-League version of Flo Rida ... but they did decide to hold the league's slam dunk contest in the middle of the game. With defending champion L.D. Williams protecting his crown against Chris Roberts, Zach Andrews and Osiris Eldridge, the D-League All-Star game's halftime show might be the best of the season (not involving the Inflatamaniacs, of course).

If one happens to tune into NBA TV on Saturday afternoon to catch the All-Star game itself, however, be prepared to be confused. In conjunction with the sponsor 26 Seconds, the shot clock will be -- you guessed it -- 26 seconds "in order to drive awareness to the fact that a student drops out of high school every 26 seconds in America."

Unfortunately, the actual game is lacking, as the best players in the D-League either haven't played enough games in the D-League to qualify for the All-Star game or are already in the NBA, and therefore had to be replaced on the roster. The most notable names left are probably JamesOn Curry on the East squad, while Justin Dentmon, Jerome Dyson, Blake Ahearn, Gerald Green and Andre Emmett represent the West side (on name recognition alone, the West should win).

Either way, it shouldn't be worse than the Celebrity Game.