Dwight Howard’s D12 Charity All-Star Weekend capped off Sunday night with the celebrity game at the UCF Arena in front of a sold out crowd.
The game featured past and present Orlando Magic players, who gathered at the UCF Arena to raise money for the D12 charity foundation and entertain fans who are starved for basketball as the NBA lockout continues to drag on.
“I think this is the best way that you could express how you feel about a certain group of people- doing an event like this was something that me and a couple guys sat down and thought about,” Howard said in the post-game press conference.
“We sat down guys like Gilbert (Arenas), Q (Quentin Richardson), Chris Duhon and a lot of other Magic players, and we talked about ways we could just better our city. This is really for our fans here in Orlando.”
Howard was able to attract a lot of star power for the charity event, highlighted by the game’s two coaches, Lil Wayne and Floyd “Money” Mayweather.
Wayne coached the “New School” team, while Mayweather coached the “Old School” team.
Mayweather’s Old School team, featuring the former Orlando players, beat the New School team 111-102, pulling away in the fourth quarter with a barrage of three-pointers.
“Well it’s great, to have the support from the players, Floyd and Lil Wayne,” Howard said. “For those guys to come out, it’s big, and I thank all the players and everyone who was involved. This weekend was a success. We did this in two weeks- for the turnout we’ve had- it has been great.”
The “New School” team was led by Howard and featured current Magic players, such as Jameer Nelson, Brandon Bass, Earl Clark, Quentin Richardson, Ryan Anderson and Gilbert Arenas.
The “Old School” team was led by former Magic All-Star Penny Hardaway, who received a warm reception from the crowd, as well as Heat forward Mike Miller, Matt Barnes, Courtney Lee, Trevor Ariza, Marcin Gortat, Steve Francis, Rashard Lewis and Drew Gooden.
While the game was taken very lightly by the players, characterized by a lot of sloppy play and turnovers, there was still a great entertainment factor that remained. Nelson and Howard teamed up on several alley-oops in the game, and there were plenty of other great plays by the current and former Magic players.
The game was a genuine portrayal of selflessness by Howard, who put on the weekend primarily for the fans, as well as charity, and was able to attract some great stars for the event.
Mayweather was happy to show his face at the game for Howard, who he calls a friend, and because it was for a good cause.
“When it’s all said and done, the main thing is about being positive and giving back to the America citizens,” Mayweather said. “I’m happy to be here today, supporting Dwight Howard. Any event that’s positive that I can give back, and not just financially, but my time, I’m here to support him for whatever.”
Floyd even fielded questions on the status of fighting Manny Pacquiao, who beat Juan Marquez Saturday night in a majority decision.
“Whether it was a win, lose or draw last night, I didnt get the chance to see the fight. I just feel boxing should be a clean sport. I feel that I’m entitled to my own opinion,” Mayweather said. “I said that both fighters should take the test, random blood and urine… Whoever my next opponent may be, I must take the test as well as my opponent.”
Regardless, Mayweather and the rest of the players that particpated in the event enjoyed a night of basketball in good fun, while supporting a great cause.
“Any of my teammates that call me to do anything for charity, I will be there to support because it’s all for a good cause,” Magic forward Brandon Bass said.
“It felt good to actually go up and down. Because I haven’t played much five-on-five this summer.”
For a night, basketball was back. The fans, players and coaches all enjoyed the atmosphere. Former and current Orlando Magic players all got to reunite for a night and play the sport they love, as well as play with old teammates and put on a show.
“One thing I like about it is that it’s NBA players out supporting each other,” Howard said. “It’s great. We’re like frat brothers. No matter what team these guys are on or whatever, we still support each other. We’re still brothers. That’s the thing I always tell the guys that have been on my team. No matter what happens in life, we’ll always be family. I hope it showed tonight.”
Unless things change soon, it might be the last basketball we will see for a while.
