The NBA All-Star H–O–R–S–E Competition (also called the NBA All–Star G–E–I–C–O Competition because of its sponsor, Geico Insurance) was a

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

(NBA) contest which began at the 2009 NBA All–Star Weekend in

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

, and only lasted for two years. It was canceled from the All-Star festivities prior to the 2011 weekend. The contest had been held on the Saturday night prior to the All-Star Game.

History

The NBA had held H–O–R–S–E competitions during the . Throughout that season,

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

broadcast NBA games during the regular season and the playoffs. The host was

Don Criqui Don Criqui (born October 1, 1940) is an American sportscaster. He holds the record for longest-tenured NFL broadcaster in U.S. TV history, calling NFL football for 47 seasons (1967-2013) on NBC and CBS. Criqui's final NFL broadcast came on De ...

and the NBA official was retired referee

Mendy Rudolph Marvin "Mendy" Rudolph (March 8, 1926July 4, 1979) was an American professional basketball referee in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 22 years, from 1953 to 1975. One of the few basketball game officials to be inducted into the Bas ...

. There were a total of 32 players and the finals had a match up of

Pete Maravich Peter Press Maravich ( ; June 22, 1947 – January 5, 1988), known by his nickname Pistol Pete, was an American professional basketball player. Maravich was born in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area, and raised i ...

verse

Paul Westphal Paul Douglas Westphal (November 30, 1950 – January 2, 2021) was an American basketball player, head coach, and commentator. Westphal played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1972 to 1984. Playing the guard position, he won an ...

. Maravich was injured and replaced by

Rick Barry Richard Francis Dennis Barry III (born March 28, 1944) is an American retired professional basketball player who starred at the NCAA, American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA) levels. Barry ranks among the ...

who lost to Westphal. During halftime of those games, they showed a pre-taped H–O–R–S–E tournament pitting players from the NBA against each other. It featured, among others,

Bob McAdoo Robert Allen McAdoo Jr. ( ; born September 25, 1951) is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He played 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he was a five-time NBA All-Star and named the NBA Most ...

Kevin Grevey Kevin Michael Grevey (born May 12, 1953) is a retired American professional basketball player. A 6'5" (1.96 m) swingman, the left-handed Grevey played for the Washington Bullets from 1975 to 1983 and the Milwaukee Bucks from 1983 to 1985. He is ...

, and

George Gervin George Gervin ( ; born April 27, 1952), nicknamed "the Iceman", is an American former professional basketball player who played in both the American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Virginia Squires, ...

. There was also a Battle of the Sexes match where Karen Logan, a female, beat

Jerry West Jerome Alan West (born May 28, 1938) is an American basketball executive and former player. He played professionally for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His nicknames included "Mr. Clutch", for his ability ...

in 1975 and was matched against

Oscar Robertson Oscar Palmer Robertson (born November 24, 1938), nicknamed "the Big O", is an American former professional basketball player who played for the Cincinnati Royals and Milwaukee Bucks in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Robertson playe ...

where she took a 7-0 lead. Her claim was that they changed the rules and she lost 10-8.Newspaper
/ref> In 2020, due to the suspension of the NBA season because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

, the NBA produced a televised event in which NBA and WNBA players participated in a virtual H–O–R–S–E competition while quarantining at their respective homes. The NBA raised $200,000 for charities while

Mike Conley Jr. Michael Alex Conley Jr. (born October 11, 1987) is an American professional basketball player for the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was drafted as the fourth pick in the 2007 NBA draft by the Memphis Grizzlies. Con ...

of the Utah Jazz won the first virtual competition, edging the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January ...

Zach LaVine Zachary Thomas LaVine ( ; born March 10, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected in the first round of the 2014 NBA draft with the 13th overall pick ...

Rules

The modern-day All-Star Competition was similar to that of regular H–O–R–S–E, where each participant took shots from unconventional locations and in unconventional ways to diminish their opponents' chances of duplicating the shot. Certain rule adjustments were made, however, that differed from conventional H–O–R–S–E competition: *No dunking was allowed. *Players had 24 seconds each to create and mimic shots. *An NBA referee authenticated the new shots (that the player executed what he announced) and any mimic shot. The game took place on a ×

court A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in acco ...

, which is exactly one-half the size of a regulation length basketball court.

Winners

All-time participants

References

External links

Photo of the court and rig used for 2009 H-O-R-S-E Competition
{{DEFAULTSORT:NBA All-Star Weekend H-O-R-S-E Competition National Basketball Association All-Star Game National Basketball Association lists Recurring sporting events established in 2009 Recurring sporting events disestablished in 2011