Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Tonight marks the 62nd NBA All Star Game.

It’s the main event of the ever-exciting NBA All-Star Weekend.

It’s the game that gives this weekend its name and is the reason fans travel near and far to come join the festivities.

It gives the players the fuel to play at the highest-level throughout the first-half of the season, as they hope to earn the prestigious honor of representing their respective conference in this big game.

This season’s event welcomes a host of new stars playing in their first ever All-Star Game, along with the perennial powers who’ve become familiar and expected faces. It’s shaping up to be a fun game, featuring one of the most refreshing lineups in recent memory.

The biggest discussions prior to the game revolve around which team will win and who will be the game’s MVP. However, because of it being a fun event and the game having a care-free aura surrounding it, few conversations ever discuss who needs it more.

That changes now.

As far as an entire team goes, one might suggest that the Eastern Conference needs the win more. With the newly implemented All-Star Weekend scoring system, the West took the victory over the East on Saturday with a score of 140-125. Having the East win tonight would even the score and prevent the West from securing further bragging rights.

Beyond that, there are a few individual players that need this win.

My first choice is Kevin Durant.

The Oklahoma City Thunder came into this weekend off a loss to the Miami Heat. That makes them 0-2 versus Miami thus far this season.

Both teams are looking strong this season and could potentially have a rematch in the NBA Finals should their success keep up. If that were to happen, the Thunder would have to even the playing field in order to keep some momentum on their side. A win for the Western Conference, with Durant playing a key role (MVP?) could not only give him and the Thunder momentum heading into the second half of the season, but also momentum in a possible eventual rematch against the defending NBA Champions.

A win for the West could do a lot of good for Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers, as well.

Since the acquisitions of Dwight Howard and Steve Nash, the Lakers have been making a lot of noise, though not for their success. They’ve fallen considerably short of their expectations and display what seems to be internal tension. Perhaps a win for the Western Conference can help Kobe Bryant and teammate Dwight Howard relax, reduce their stress level, and bond while their guard is down, so that they can regroup and help their Lakers push forward towards playoff contention during the second half of the season, if at all possible.

LeBron James could use a “W” in the All-Star game tonight. As a matter of fact, he needs more than just a victory;

He needs to be the All Star MVP … again.

It’s a certain “Greatest Player of All Time”’s birthday today.

For those who weren’t already aware, today is Michael Jordan’s 50th birthday.

The sports world has been on fire this week with LeBron James-Michael Jordan comparison stories. Things got even spicier when Jordan himself said he’d pick Kobe Bryant over LeBron James because five rings are worth more than one.

LeBron dismissed the comments, but rather than just ignoring them, maybe he can quiet them somehow, some way. Should he win tonight, and earn the MVP honors, he can carry with him that momentum when the season picks back up and continue his ridiculous hot streak past seven games with 30+ points per game and a 60% field goal percentage. While All Star MVP isn’t a championship ring, it still holds some prestigious weight in the NBA, and it would look great on James’ already bulky resume.

John Armstrong is a writer for Sir Charles in Charge. You may follow him on Twitter at @JohnYJArmstrong

Mandatory Credit: Jeff Haynes/Reuters via USA TODAY Sports

The 2013 edition of the Sprite Slam Dunk Contest has come and gone, with Toronto Raptors rookie Terrence Ross taking the top prize after knocking off defending champion Jeremy Evans in the final round.

While the competition did have its moments, for the most part, it was rather unremarkable.

Let’s take a look back at all of the dunks on the night and see just how good (or bad) everyone did.

Gerald Green Dunk #1  (Official Score: 50)

GRADE: A

Considering some of the garbage that followed, this was easily one of the best dunks on the night. Green has a vertical to die for, as his head nearly hit the rim because he jumped so damn high. It was quite impressive.

NBA on TNT analyst Kenny Smith really hyped up the rest of the event after this amazing jam, saying that it was going to be one of the ten greatest Dunk Contests of all-time.

Of course, he was dead wrong.

James White Dunk #1 (Official Score: 45)

GRADE: C

As soon as I noticed that he was going to attempt a free-throw dunk, I immediately had flashbacks of when he put the ball between-his-legs after jumping from the foul line in a Dunk Contest in Europe a few years ago.

I hyped myself up for this dunk, as my expectations for White were sky-high going into this competition. It wasn’t terrible, but considering he didn’t actually take off from the charity stripe, it just didn’t resonate with me.

Terrence Ross Dunk #1 (Final Score: 50)

GRADE: B

Shaquille O’Neal made a valid point on commentary; the more attempts it takes to complete a dunk, the less exciting it is when you actually complete it, regardless of the difficulty.

The judges clearly didn’t hold all of his misses against him, awarding Ross a 50.

I probably would have, as the stickler that I am.

Kenneth Faried Dunk #1 (Final Score: 39)

GRADE: C -

Meh.

If the “Manimal” completed this dunk with more power and authority, it would have come off a lot better than it did.

It looked like he wound up too far under the net after completing his 360 degree rotation, leaving him vulnerable to a weak dunk.

Eric Bledsoe Dunk #1: (Final Score: 39)

GRADE: D +

Bledsoe was originally going for a dunk between-his-legs, but after failing miserably on several occasions, he wound up settling for this.

“yawn”.

I will cut him some slack for being tired and just needing to get a dunk down to get a reasonable score. Otherwise, I would have given this an F.

Jeremy Evans Dunk #1 (Final Score: 47)

GRADE: B -

Utah Jazz great Mark Eaton looked like he wanted to be anywhere else.

If Evans had nailed it on his first attempt, he would have gotten a better mark from moi.

I’ve seen the “let’s jam over someone while they’re sitting down” dunk before. It’s nothing new.

For an opening dunk, I guess it was alright.