By Colin A.J. Murphy

NBA stars Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, and LeBron James were in Baltimore Tuesday night, playing in an exhibition along with dozens of fellow NBA players. Anthony's team defeated Kevin Durant and the Goodman League squad, 149-141.

It has been made abundantly clear this summer that NBA players are not letting the league’s ongoing labor dispute and resulting lockout stifle their appetite for basketball, and specifically their appetite for playing in front of fans. Instead, the players are putting on exhibition after exhibition on playgrounds and in small gymnasiums across the country, from Los Angeles to New York to Washington D.C.

On Tuesday night, perhaps the highest-profile of all such exhibitions this summer came to the 4,500-seat arena on the campus of Morgan State University in Baltimore, where the likes of LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, and Kevin Durant delivered a sensational, two-hour long basketball highlight reel before a positively giddy capacity crowd in the Carmelo Anthony League vs. Goodman League showdown. Anthony’s squad, which featured James and Paul along with a host of other NBA players, defeated the Goodman League by a score of 149-141 despite an eye-popping 59 points from Kevin Durant of the Goodman League team.

LeBron James wowed the capacity crowd at Morgan State with a barrage of highlight-reel dunks en route to 32 points.

“Lot of fun, man,” said Paul after the contest. “One of the funnest games I’ve been a part of in a long time.” Paul scored 16 points on a dazzling collection of dribble-drives, and after the contest he spoke of what it means to be continuing to play in front of fans this summer. “A lot of people I think got an opportunity to see us up close and personal who may not get that opportunity a lot of other times.”

For just $28 a ticket—a fraction of what it would cost to sit within 30 rows of the court at any NBA arena—with the proceeds going to Carmelo Anthony’s youth charity, it was easy to understand why the capacity crowd of Morgan State students, Baltimore locals, and media was in a continual state of awe, wonder, and celebration throughout the night. As the players entered the arena a short while before tipoff, security allowed fans to descend onto the court to seek autographs and photos, and the players willingly obliged while trying to get in at least a little bit of a stretch and warmup before the game started.

After twenty minutes, the court was cleared, and the players put on a show to remember. James and Durant, the world’s two best players, defended one another throughout most of the night, and they took turns wowing the crowd with an endless array of moves. In addition to swishing several turnaround jump shots, James broke free for multiple dunks throughout the contest and finished with 32 points. Not to be outdone, Durant came back at James with a fury of shake-and-bake crossovers to free himself for jump shots and drives to the bucket. As the two stars traded blows and poured in the points, their respective supporting casts likewise joined the highlight party.

James and Kevin Durant battled back and forth all night. Durant won the individual matchup, scoring 59 points, but James's team prevailed 149-141.

Anthony scored 27 points for his namesake squad in the victory. The Grizzlies’ Josh Selby, a Baltimore native, scored 16 points for the Anthony team, and the Clippers’ Eric Bledsoe also had 16. Despite playing alongside some of the most recognizable athletes on the planet, Bledsoe and Selby also garnered some of the biggest crowd responses on the night. Selby skied way above the rim to slam home an alley-oop pass from James in the game’s opening moments, and in the second half, Bledsoe converted a fast break, in-traffic, off-the-backboard pass from Paul with a thunderous two-hand dunk that nearly brought the house down.

Carmelo Anthony scored 27 points for his namesake squad in the victory.

Baltimore native Josh Selby flashed serious hops on this dunk in the game's opening moments.

The Los Angeles Clippers' Eric Bledsoe springboarded off the rim after a putback slam in the second half. Moments later Bledsoe caught an off-the-backboard alley-oop pass from Paul and dunked it home, sending the already jazzed crowd into a frenzy.

On the Goodman side, the Detroit Pistons’ Austin Daye impressed by racking up 23 points from the inside and outside. The Spurs’ Gary Neal scored 17, while the Hornets’ Jarrett Jack scored 13.

Afterwards, the players were asked about the looming threat of an abbreviated or altogether wiped-out NBA season.

“I’m worried because I want to play,” said Anthony to a group of reporters. “October is right around the corner, and it don’t look like we’re going to start on time.”

As is evident from Tuesday’s game, it is important to the players that the fans get to see basketball, a point Paul reiterated after the contest when asked about the lockout. “Our fans deserve a season, so we’re going to do the best we can [to get a deal done].” Asked about whether he thinks that this summer’s hugely popular exhibitions such as the one on Tuesday night will influence the NBA labor negotiations in any way, Paul expressed a sentiment that has consistently come from the players throughout the summer. “We don’t do it for that reason. We do it for the love of the game…This is what we grew up doing.”

• View a FULL PHOTO GALLERY of this game.

• For more photos from Goodman League action this summer, as well as from the recent Goodman vs. Drew League (Los Angeles) game, return to The Voice Sports Blog in full.

GAME NOTES

• Anthony spoke afterwards of how important it was for him to hold the game in his hometown: “I think Baltimore needed this. I think they definitely needed this. I think it’s great to bring to the fans and the city something they haven’t seen.”

• Juan Dixon played in the game for Carmelo Anthony’s team. The former Maryland star and NCAA champion—as well as native of Baltimore—definitely got some love from the crowd when he swished a three from the left wing in the second half.

• The house was so packed that the Goodman League reserves didn’t have anywhere to sit.

Fans were so tightly clustered around the court that they took over the Goodman League bench.

• Wake Forest product Chris Paul and former UNC Tar Heel Ty Lawson had a little bit of a sparring match going on throughout the game, much to the delight of goading fans. In the first half, Paul hit a three in Lawson’s grill, then shook him for another swished jumper on the next possession. Lawson got his revenge on the next possession with a drive to the hoop and layup.

• View a FULL PHOTO GALLERY of this game.

• To see highlights of this game and many more, visit The Mars Reel.

• Fans of the Wizards/Bullets, be sure to check out the D.C. blog Truth About It. For additional national NBA news, columns, photos, and features, visit Hoopspeak.

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