Gerald Green of the Boston Celtics is the NBA's new slam dunk champion, while Jason Kapono of the Miami Heat is the reigning long distance marksman.
Green unseated Nate Robinson of the New York Knicks winning in the final with a dunk over a table placed in front of the bottom of the circle that earned him a perfect mark of 50 from judges Kobe Bryant, Vince Carter, Dominique Wilkens, Julius Erving and Michael Jordan.
But perhaps the lasting impression was left by 6-foot-11 centre Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic.
The massive centre placed a sticker of his face near the top of the backboard - 12-feet, six inches off the floor - before dunking. He earned only 43 for the effort, not enough to advance, but the sticker remained throughout the event. Who could take it down?
Kapono, the NBA's leading three-point shooter on the season, tied the all-time record by scoring 24 in the final, enough to outlast Dirk Nowitzki and Gilbert Arenas.
Dwyane Wade won the skills competition over Bryant, Lebron James and Chris Paul.
Charles Barkley proved he's still got something left.
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The 44-year-old former National Basketball Association star turned television pundit was able to hold off 67-year-old referee Dick Bavetta in a match race during the NBA All-Star Saturday Night activities.
The much-hyped contest between the ultra-fit Bavetta and the rotund Barkley, nearly as famous for his appetites as for his hall-of-fame playing career, involved three-and-half lengths of a 94-foot court.
Barkley maintained the event was all in good fun: "I've got nothing against old people. I want to be one one day," he joked.
Bavetta, who runs eight-miles a day is one of the NBA's more colourful officials.
When told that many had him as the favourite in the early betting Bavetta would have none of it. "Don't believe it. Never underestimate the heart of a champion," he said, a subtle dig at Barkley's championship-free career.
But Barkley did his talking in the race. Then again he had too, as he was too out of breath to speak afterwards. He took a lead on the first length and had enough of a cushion to backpeddle across the finish line.
"Dick Bavetta is one of my favourite people. We're going to give a ton of money - two blackjack hands - to charity," he said, while holding a cheque for $50,000 for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Las Vegas.
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Not content with the Atlantic, the Toronto Raptors are taking Europe.
The NBA announced Saturday the Atlantic Division leading Raptors would be one of four teams to take part in the second edition of NBA Europe Live, where NBA teams train and play part of their exhibition schedule in Europe.
"It's a new place, it's something out of the ordinary, it's a tremendous team building experience," said Raptors president Bryan Colangelo.
The Raptors maximize their considerable European ties.
The club will open training camp in Treviso, Italy on October 1st at the Treviso Sports Centre, the multisport complex that is home to Benetton Treviso.
They will then travel to Rome where they will play two games: October 6th against the Boston Celtics and October 7th against Lottomatica Roma.
The final stop is Madrid, Spain, where the Raptors will play Real Madrid on October 11th.
Also participating are the Memphis Grizzlies and Minnesota Timberwolves. Games will be played in London, Istanbul and Malaga, Spain
Maurizio Gherardini, the Raptors assistant general manager, formerly ran basketball operation for Benetton, while Andrea Bargnani, the NBA's first overall pick in the 2006 draft, played for Benetton before coming to the NBA. As well, he was born and raised in Rome.
The Raptors also have two Spanish players on their roster: Jorge Garbajosa and Jose Calderon.
"People talk about the negatives, the fatigue factor and all of that," said Colangelo. "[But]I think that they're going to be uplifted by the whole process. If we schedule our things accordingly when we come back it shouldn't be a problem. Guys will get plenty of rest, plenty of time to recover and the season starts three weeks later."
For Bargnani it's an opportunity he might not have expected when he decided to pursue a professional career in the NBA.
"To come back to my hometown with my NBA team will be an incredible experience," he said. "It's an opportunity to see my friends and family and for them to see me play, my grandmother, my grandfather."
For Raptors all-star Chris Bosh, it's a chance to make his first trip to Europe.
"I'm looking forward to it," said Bosh. "I think we're going to have a lot of fun. It's a chance to see another country and let [those]guys play in front of their home crowd. I'm looking forward to it."
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Chris Bosh has come a long way since his rookie season, but Michael Curry isn't surprised by how far and fast he's come.
Curry was a mentor for Bosh in what was a tumultuous rookie campaign. The 11-year veteran is now the vice president, player development for the NBA Development League, but in 2003-04 he was in his final season as a player and charged with educating Bosh, a 19-year-old rookie, in the ways of the professional game.
Curry's take? He had a very willing student.
"The thing with Chris, is that skill wise you can improve, physically you improve, but the thing that has never changed with him is his desire to be great," said Curry, who was in Las Vegas as part of the first NBDL all-star game. "He raised the bar on his own, before anyone else raised the bar for what they expected of him, his own expectations were really high.
"Because of that, you never had to worry about him doing all the things necessary to compete at a really high level. He's going to take care of himself off the court; he's going to practice and prepare he's going to do the things a leader should do.
Bosh had the desire, but Curry had the expertise, introducing the young rookie to how to prepare for games, read scouting reports and develop proper practice habits.
They've paid off, as Bosh is on his way to career highs in scoring (23.3) and rebounding (10.7) and the Raptors are the surprise of the NBA this season.
"He's now in the class of players that gets measured by how much success his team has," said Curry. "If you want to be a great player, it becomes about how well your team does."
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David Stern holds his "state-of-the-union" address every Saturday at the All-Star weekend, and never fails to impress with his ability to deal deftly with a range of issues.
Stern declared the event a success in Las Vegas, the first time the league has taken its mid-season showcase to a neutral site. He also clarified his stance on gambling as it relates to NBA games, the main obstacle to having an NBA franchise in the United States' legal gambling capitol.
Stern said that on previous occasions when the league has shown little flexibility on having the league associated with any kind of gambling on basketball - such as when he nearly revoked the Raptors franchise until receiving a concession from the Ontario government that they would removed NBA games from it's Pro-Line lottery tickets in 1994 - were not because he's got concerns about gambling itself or possible opportunities for corruption.
"It was not an anti-gambling pronouncement," he said. "And it was not about the evils or criminality….[But]for the most part our fans, when they leave and the home team wins, they're happy. They're not unhappy because they won and but they didn't cover the spread. And so we have evolved a position that says we'd like not to change the relationship of our fans and our game."
Earlier this week Stern invited Las Vegas officials to develop a proposal for how the regions casinos would deal betting on NBA games. It's expected to be submitted some time late in March, and Stern will present to NBA owners at their meetings on April 20th.
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Stern also made some interesting comments regarding his decision to send former NBA star Tim Hardaway home from Las Vegas after he made comments regarding his hatred for gays in light of former NBA journeyman John Amaechi's announcement last week that he was gay.
Stern defended his decision to remove Hardaway from a roster of former players making appearances on behalf of the NBA: "I applaud the First Amendment, anyone can say what they want to say, but they can't work for whoever they want to work for if [their views]are inconsistent [with ours.]
Stern said he's tried to contact Hardaway, but hasn't been successful yet. He also seemed to indicate that the collision of events - Amaechi coming out and Hardaway making clear his view on gays - could create an opportunity for a league that has always prided itself on being socially progressive.
"Stay tuned," said Stern. "I'm sure we haven't heard the end of it. I can tell you that ….the game is our passion and puts in a position where we have to be leaders. We're obligated to be leaders in social responsibility."
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Stern, along with NBA Players Association president Billy Hunter, also announced the league's owner and the union were collaborating on increased pension benefits for players who retired prior to 1965.
The older players will receive a 50-per-cent increase in their benefits - from $2,400 a year for each year of service to $3,600 a year.
As well, players with three and four years of service will be covered by the pension for the first time. Previously players had to have played at least five years to qualify.