Kel'el Ware gets a taste of the Rising Stars game

The best of All-Star weekend came early because the youngsters gave a you-know-what, despite Steve Ballmer getting louder chants than the players. Playoff intensity wasn’t there, of course, but each skirmish was like watching vintage ABA games since they played fast.

V.J. Edgecombe, the Rising Stars MVP, said, “Free throws are precious, and we needed them to win the game.” He also said there was a desire to make it worth the people’s time.

Team Melo took first blood by Dylan Harper’s step-back jumper over his brother Ron, defeating Team Austin by six points.

Then the second match was Team McGrady versus Team Vince. The ball movement was not as strong, but the latter took the game by the throat, setting up a clash with Team Melo. It didn't matter that Jaylon Tyson’s outside shooting gave them a boost while his teammate Donovan Mitchell sat courtside, wearing his jersey. Team T-Mac was too slow to stop the action in the restricted area and corners. V.J. Edgecombe made the winning jumper when matched up with Memphis’ Cam Spencer.

In the final, Team Vince established an edge by playing in transition, and they got multiple field goals from Edgecombe, Jaylen Wells, Carter Byrant and Matas Buzelis in spite of their long-range shooting faltering.

Takeaways:

-The format for the Rising Stars game works because a smaller target score ensures the players give effort. Teams first competed to a target score (40 points) to determine the final match (25 points). It was quick and the players who stood out the most aside from Edgecombe were Reed Sheppard, Donovan Clingan, Carter Bryant, Yanic Konan Niederhäuser and Hansen Yang. Particularly, Yang’s advantage is his massive hands, which help with his ball control; he was a beast, scoring in the lane.

-Team Vince had the advantage because they played in the second game, staying loose, and didn’t have to wait for the final, while Team Melo didn’t stay as hot in the final.

-Clingan was too much to handle for Team Austin as he blew up actions at close range and got anything he wanted on the glass and inside. The only way to attack him was to go at him as the low man. Yet, his team stopped going to him, which allowed Team Austin to start clawing back in to make it a closer game.

-Sometimes the wrong reads were made, but the rising stars can’t be blamed much for their boldness. A lot of them were trying to show things they normally don’t have the opportunity to do in regular span games.

-Kel’el Ware is a promising second-year player who hasn’t put it all together yet for the Miami Heat, and he was one of the most disappointing players in the Rising Stars game. He struggled in his minutes with Team T-Mac because he was pressing. He also got beat in drop coverage, bit on a fake, and didn’t impose his physicality. It wasn’t all negative since he managed to make a small dent in the paint; however, more is expected from someone who has the potential to be one of the top big men in the NBA.

Furthermore, it’s great that Ware is a willing 3-point shooter, but he has a habit of bailing out a defense when he falls in love with the perimeter. As nice as a finesse game is, he has a verticality advantage over anyone who played in the Rising Stars game, and he would put more pressure on a defense, overpowering the smalls.

-Jaylen Wells made a couple of threes, played unselfishly, yet more impressively, his defense was sharp as he pressured the ball handler. He was assertive in the final, looking for openings.