NBA All Star 2022

Michael Jordan Grabbed Mary J Blige’s Backside At NBA All-Star And 50 Cent’s Got Jokes

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The NBA’s All-Star weekend is often a star-studded event, as both the league’s athletes and other entertainers get the chance to come together to enjoy the host city’s festivities as well as a low-stakes run of basketball games that allow for more socializing than the average in-season game. This year’s festivities were no different, as the league’s 75th anniversary brought out even bigger stars than usual, including retired players like Michael Jordan, who was honored as one of the 75 best players in league history.

But basketballs weren’t the only thing Jordan palmed over the weekend, which led to some pretty amusing memes from social media. When MJ encountered one of those celebrities, Mary J Blige — who’s fresh off her own big performance at the Super Bowl which included a surprise appearance from 50 Cent — their friendly hug apparently turned out a little more than that when cameras caught the hooper resting his hand on what looked to be the singer’s backside. Naturally, Twitter achieved liftoff from sheer reaction energy as fans noted the exchange and took great delight in pointing it out.

One of those fans was none other than 50 Cent, who never misses a chance to weigh in on a viral moment with a meme or two of his own, and in this case, he had the perfect gag, courtesy of his Starz drama series Power. Posting a pretty big spoiler for the recent season finale of Book II: Ghost (which stars Mary as Monique, the matriarch of a drug-dealing family that includes an NBA prospect basketball player, Zeke), 50 shared a fan’s screenshot with the comment “See just when we thought it was all f*cked up.” Of course, if you haven’t caught up on the show, you can click away, but if you’re not that pressed about the shocking ending — which, yeah, I hollered a bit when it aired — scroll on down to see 50’s reaction.

Machine Gun Kelly Helped Introduce The NBA All-Star Lineups And Macy Gray And Earth, Wind & Fire Performed

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NBA All-Star Weekend is about the finest talent professional basketball has to offer, but some of the biggest names in music popped up during the festivities, too. DJ Khaled, Lil Wayne, Lil Baby, Gunna, Ludacris, Migos, and Mary J. Blige performed on Saturday, and yesterday’s actual All-Star Game featured more recognizable music figures taking the stage.

Machine Gun Kelly (who was born in Houston but spent some of his formative years in Cleveland, this year’s All-Star host city) helped introduce the game’s starting lineups by getting the crowd excited, thanking “all the hard workers of this town,” cracking a couple of jokes, and handing things over to DJ D-Nice before the team lineups were properly introduced. Kelly had his fingerprints all over the weekend, as he also played during the celebrity game.

Prior to tip-off, Juno Award nominee Ryland James sang the Canadian national anthem before Ohio native Macy Gray delivered a rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Some people online noticed LeBron James seemed amused by Gray’s performance, as he was seen seemingly trying to suppress a smile as she sang.

As for halftime, the mid-game break was mostly focused on a celebration of the 75th anniversary team, although it did feature Earth, Wind & Fire performing their thematically appropriate hit “Shining Star.”

Meanwhile, Adele was spotted courtside (which makes sense given her relationship with sports agent Rich Paul) and caught the attention of the TNT broadcast crew, which prompted Charles Barkley to reckon he and Adele ought to duet. Barkley’s co-hosts quickly and definitively shot that idea down.

Check out the musical highlights from the All-Star Game above.

DJ Khaled Airballs But Ultimately Triumphs On The NBA All-Star Skills Challenge Course

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NBA All-Star Game Weekend is upon us and DJ Khaled is 100 percent in Cleveland to attend the festivities. Earlier today, he took the NBA All-Star Skills Challenge course for a test drive, presumably warming it up for the three teams of the Antetokounmpo brothers, Cavaliers players, and rookies. Watching Khaled, decked out in a leather jacked and countless layers of iced out diamond necklaces, was a thrill.

He starts dribbling around the barriers, showing the ability to handle the rock with both right and left hands. He crosses over past the final obstacle before pulling up for a jump shot.

Clearly bogged down by the pounds of stones around his neck, his first shot was an airball. But never discouraged, he demands the ball back — “It don’t matter!” — he then pulls up again and swishes his second attempt triumphantly.

“Do not give up,” he says to the camera. “Don’t get discouraged. If you fall, get up. You keep going. I could’ve made it on the first shot, but there’s so much ice on me!”

The truly inspirational performance from DJ Khaled. One Twitter commenter was impressed with how quickly he sank the bucket, saying “Only two attempts to make the shot? This man can take Russ spot [crying laughing emojis]” Oh, the shade.

Watch the video of DJ Khaled’s skills on Twitter above. The actual Taco Bell NBA All Star Skills Challenge is the first event on Saturday, 02/19, beginning at 5 p.m. PST. The 2022 NBA All-Star Game itself is on Sunday at 5 p.m. PST.

MGK Is Apparently Taking His NBA All-Star Celebrity Game Selection VERY Seriously

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The NBA’s All-Star Weekend in Cleveland, Ohio is right around the corner and while NBA players get the week off from a grueling 82-game season, some of the event’s participants have actually increased their activity in preparation for the festivities — including Cleveland native Machine Gun Kelly, who is apparently taking his selection to the celebrity game’s roster very seriously.

While the famous competitors in past iterations of the game have put previously existing hoop skills on display — Quavo, for instance, was a decorated high school athlete before his rap career took off — MGK has gone a step further, hiring celebrity skills coach Chris Matthews (aka @lethalshooter on Instagram) to help him brush up on his jumper before the game. Matthews, who has also worked with NBA players, WNBA players, and celebrities like
Anthony Davis, Candace Parker, and even Drake, posted a video of MGK running a shooting drill to his Instagram, which includes MGK sinking three (high school) three-pointers in a row and pre-emptively declaring himself MVP of the celebrity game.

Of course, MGK will have to outplay his teammate Quavo for that distinction — a tough sell, considering he’s been the game’s MVP in 2018 — as well as noted hoop aficionado Jack Harlow, who participated with Quavo in last year’s two-on-two event against Lil Baby and 2 Chainz, the WNBA’s Dearica Hambry, and former Harlem Globetrotter Crissa Jackson, among others.