The first round of our one-one-one tourney concludes this week with two marquee bouts. Hopefully the Cavs are still alive and kicking when our second round kicks off. The likes of Kobe, KG and Agent Zero could await the winners of this week’s match-ups, as we hope to drive towards something along the lines of today’s Federer-Nadal match in the French Open. But first we survey the damage from last week.

The premise: (if you know how this tourney operates, feel free to skip down!)

The rules are simple. 32 of today’s biggest stars, plus some fantasy forces and a few players of the “x-factor” ilk have been chosen to participate in this exercise. Assume each player is in perfect health and in peak condition, based on their current age and abilities. Suppose these players play each other in a game of one-on-one: games to 11, two points for a three-pointer, and winners out. You can make your comment after each article, or if you like, send me an e-mail at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). You can now also make your comments on our Facebook group discussion board. Please vote just once for each match-up. If you are so inclined, feel free to make up an imaginary commentary of how you see the battle going down and I will try to include your input in future articles. You have one week to vote, then the results will be published and a new pair of match-ups will be announced. So check back here every week!

Review of last week’s matches:

Game 13: Marcus Camby vs. Andre Iguodala

Patrick from Give me the Rock: “It’s funny what a few inches will do. Last week, I felt that Nash and Paul would have no chance against the big centers, but AI seems big enough to hold his own against Camby. He’s only 6-6, but it seems just enough.”

Four Twenty: “Camby is SO offensively challenged (creating his own shot anyway) that I have to go with him (Iguodala) over Marcus.”

Will: “...I think AI2 would win easily. Andre is so explosive that no big man can keep up.”

Terrance: “...Iggy is too athletic and is coming into his own: sticky hands, sticky D and he’s a high flier who can shoot! I think he has some moves around the hoop to use on Camby.

Jeff, from our Facebook group page: “Camby provides a shot-blocking presence but Iggy’s got more offensive pop than Marcus.”

My vote for Iggy makes it a straight set win. Camby would keep it close and notch quite a few defensive stops. But as everyone alluded to, it would be unlikely for him to press his height advantage when on offense against this opponent. Winner: Andre Iguodala.

Game 14: Dwight Howard vs. Andrei Kirilenko

Patrick from Give me the Rock: “...I really have no confidence in Kirilenko at the moment. He only shot 21% from the three-point line this year, so I’m not buying him as an outside threat. I see a lot of misses in this game, which gives Howard a rebounding advantage and puts him in position for some easy points.”

Jeff: “Dwight vs. AK is interesting. Dwight’s got the power and hops; AK has a little bit of everything. In terms of offense, tough to say who is better in one-on-one situations. Thus, I will roll the dice, play some roulette and go with the Russian.”

Will: Not sure if this was on purpose, but Will docked Andrei five points, and called him AK42 throughout his comments…“AK42 has some of the best defense in the league, and Howard is a beast. But that is the main factor. AK42 is built like a 12-year-old while Howard is some kind of ape. AK42 would be able to get some steals and maybe a block, but Howard’s huge frame would muscle in for a basket. Plus AK42 doesn’t have the offensive talent to get around Howard for a good look. The winner here is Howard.”

Four Twenty: “I’m going with AK on experience alone. Dwight still needs some polishing on the offensive end. I think this match-up would be some UGLY basketball!”

Terrance: “...Howard is still awkward around the hoops with just a few moves and Kirilenko’s seen a few moves in his day and defended them all. Kirilenko can play some D and is big enough to cause problems. The only thing I worry about is Howard’s strength!” Terrance then breaks down how AK plays excellent help defense, but this of course does not matter in a one-on-one match-up. And then of course there has to be the requisite props for AK-47 regarding his “arrangement” with his wife.

So the voters say that Kirilenko should win in a squeaker by a margin of three votes to two. I vote for the kid. Yes, Kirilenko has the edge in experience, and his long body and shot-blocking ability make him a tough opponent. This game has me relating it to Plastic Man picking a fight with the Incredible Hulk. Plastic Man has mad skills but if it comes down to getting from point A to point B, then how is he going to consistently stop the Hulk? Dwight’s going to cause a couple of airballs from AK’s shaky shot. Right now, AK’s “peak condition, based on age and current abilities” is not all that reliable.

So I asked one of our other writers, Ron Chow, to break the deadlock. I would have asked Sarge, but he’s too busy trying to be America’s next blog model. Ron figured that if AK could keep Dwight off the low block, where his strength would ultimately prevail, then AK could win. However, Dwight is just so big and can jump so high. AK was so inconsistent during the season that it is really hard to tell where his multifaceted game is at these days. So it came down to who Ron would bet on if he was forced to wager a thousand dollars on the outcome. Winner: Dwight Howard.

And now onto this week’s feature match-ups.

Game 15: Elton Brand vs. Paul Pierce

Slam Magazine recently ran a nickname contest for Brand and “TNT” i.e. “Twenty and Ten” was the winner. I always call him Brand Name because he bests the generic no-names all the time. In his way today is “The Truth.” One would think that a healthy Pierce would be very successful in this type of tournament. He can shoot from outside, he has a good combination of size and speed, and he’s not a wuss. Meanwhile Brand’s big man game is as textbook as they come, but how he handles Pierce on the perimeter may be the key to this encounter.

Game 16: Ron Artest vs. Vince Carter

Both of these names will be bandied about as the off-season hits. The latest word on the street has Artest heading to Houston for a package headlined by Bob Sura (!) while Carter’s camp is playing that will-he-stay-or-will-he-go game. The “Tru Warier” takes on a player with exceptional skill but questionable heart and desire. Artest is not exactly the best percentage offensive player while Carter is not exactly known for his defensive lock-down skills. This is a really good match-up to close out our first round. And in case anyone out there is wondering…yes, I already know who I’m voting for.

See you next week!

If you are just joining us now, feel free to visit the previous posts.

Round 1, Games 1 and 2

Round 1, Games 3 and 4

Round 1, Games 5 and 6

Round 1, Games 7 and 8

Round 1, Games 9 and 10

Round 1, Games 11 and 12

Round 1, Games 13 and 14