David Lee Is Loving Life

It's hard to get too revved up about an exhibition game that was as one-sided as last night's Rookie-Sophmore affair that kicked off All-Star festivities in Las Vegas. This year's rookie class has been slagged far and wide as being one of the worst in memory while players like Chris Paul, Deron Williams and David Lee aren't actually that far from being in the Sunday main event on their own merit. That showed in the 155-114 slaughter as did the continued ascendancy of Lee from final pick of the first round to first tier of NBA players.

The Knick forward, the league's leading shooter at 61.2%, was 14-of-14 from the floor for 30 points and the MVP award of the game. Still rocking the black eye he picked up on last week's road trip, Lee scored on a series of dunks and layups set up by the pair of precocious point guards on the sophmore side. Williams started and picked up seven assists but Paul made heroes of Lee and Monta Ellis with 17 dimes off the bench. The Hornet star found Ellis for four consecutive alley-oop dunks  as the first half wound down. Ellis was 13-of-16 overall and continued to flash the skills that led to the Warriors blowout win over the Knicks to end the first half.

The performance, meaningless as the game was, of Lee will help his quest for the Sixth Man of the Year award and should continue to burnish his reputation among the Garden crowd that loves him so true. He also probably had one helluva night tearing through the female talent assembled in Sin City. After all he's already had his way with Anne V, civilians are like fish in a barrel to #42.

(Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE/Getty Images)