Podium Game Playbook: Robert Pera shines in the NBA Celebrity Game

The annual NBA Celebrity Game that kicks off All-Star Weekend took place tonight in New York, and thanks to 13 points each from Skylar Diggins and Robert Pera, and near double-doubles from Win Butler and Chris Mullin, the West came away with a 59-51 victory.

Pera, the Memphis Grizzlies owner and pickup basketball enthusiast, put on quite the offensive performance, with his 13 points coming on 5-6 shooting. One of those baskets, which came early on in the second quarter, is what I want to take a look at in this special NBA Celebrity Game edition of the Podium Game Playbook.

It starts here with Skylar Diggins controlling the ball out on the wing. Meanwhile, Pera has made his way down to the low block, where he starts to set up position.

As Diggins makes her way into an attack area on the wing, Pera does a tremendous job sealing his man in the post. He gets his body into him, even giving him a little nudge to create some separation. Pera also does a great job holding out a strong hand, which gives Diggins a clear target as she tries to enter the ball in the post. Meanwhile, the other West team members are a doing a nice job spacing the floor, which gives Pera plenty of room to operate down low.

Now, as Diggins throws a beautiful little bounce pass into the post, Pera does a sublime job of shielding his defender and staying strong with his position. If he gets off balance or outmuscled here, this is a steal instead of a layup. Just great work all around here. Tremendous pass by Skylar, and excellent post offense by Pera.