Photo: Jeenah Moon/Getty
TheNational Basketball Association (NBA)is showing off a new and improved look for its most fun honors.
On Thursday, the organization unveiled the 2022 trophy lineup for NBA All-Star Game, which was designed in partnership with artistVictor Solomon.
“Commemorating the league’s most notable achievements at NBA All-Star, each trophy boasts an elevated design, fit with intricate elements symbolizing the milestone that each award represents,” the NBA said in a press release.
The newly-designed awards come as part of the league’s 75th-anniversary season and will be presented for the first time during the NBA All-Star 2022 weekend, which is Feb. 18 and Feb. 20 in Cleveland, Ohio.
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Back in 2020, NBA Commissioner Adam Silverannouncedthat the NBA All-Star Game MVP trophy had been permanently named for the lateKobe Bryant, whodiedearlier that year in a helicopter crash alongside his daughter Gianna and seven others.
On the second level, the 10 stars represent the All-Star Game starters, as well as Bryant’s USA Basketball No. 10 jersey, the NBA added. The five stars on the third level, meanwhile, “represent the unity of an NBA team” and Bryant’s five NBA championships.
At the top, a single star “represents the star of stars” and Bryant winning the Maurice Podoloff Trophy for the 2007-08 Kia NBA MVP, per the NBA.
Alongside the Kobe Bryant Trophy, the All-Star events will also crown respective champions or MVPs with trophies including the AT&T Slam Dunk Champion, the MTN DEW 3-Point Contest Champion, the Taco Bell Skills Challenge Champion and the Clorox Rising Stars MVP.
These awards, the NBA states, “take inspiration from the gold-basketball All-Star trophies that had been previously awarded to the event champions, infusing nostalgia from the past awards and spinning them forward with a new, innovative approach.”
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The NBA All-Star Game rings have also been redesigned, which are awarded to players in recognition of their selection to the All-Star game.
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The Ruffles NBA All-Star Celebrity Game MVP, meanwhile, will “award an MVP trophy fit for the game that features stars across film, television, music, sports and more.” The trophy features a 250-millimeter faceted crystal ball and “MVP” written into the ball’s center with a 3D laser.
“For the past few years, the NBA and I have proudly and tirelessly worked to reconsider what a trophy is, has been and could be,” Solomon said in a statement. “Redesigning the All-Star trophies gave us a special opportunity to create event awards worthy of the energy and excitement the moment creates, while introducing the full collection’s visual, aesthetic language.”
“The occasion also gave us the privilege and responsibility to develop an entirely new silhouette worthy of being named ‘The Kobe Bryant Trophy’ for the Kia NBA All-Star MVP for which, in the spirit of its namesake, we threw out all conventions and challenged ourselves to reorient how we thought about ‘the game,'” he added.
On Thursday evening, TNT will unveil the All-Star Game reserves and showcase the new NBA All-Star trophies at 7 p.m. ET. The 71st NBA All-Star Game will then take place on Sunday, Feb. 20 on TNT for the 20th consecutive year.
source: people.com
