Deron Williams Shows Flash, Inexperience in All-Star Debut

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Utah Jazz point guard Deron Williams came home to make his first All-Star appearance, and it showed in more ways than one.

He was thrilled to be in the game, not far from where he spent his high school days, sparking the Western Conference in the first half with an energetic, crowd-pleasing style of play.

He was hitting shots, making steals, passing behind the back with precise, no-look gems that got both the crowd and teammate Kevin Durant more involved.

Then he got burned by his inexperience at the end.

"I was have a lot of fun out there, really going after it,'' Williams said. "Some of these guys had been in this game five or six times, so they may approach it differently. I was in my first, playing hard, being home in front of my family and friends.''

Williams, now in his fifth NBA season, had five assists and hit three of his four shots in that second period, looking like the best point guard in the game for those seven minutes.

He finished with 14 points, six assists and four steals, but he got badly outplayed down the stretch by Dwyane Wade, who won the MVP award.

Wade stole the ball from him twice in the fourth quarter, including the critical one with 17 seconds remaining and the score tied. Then Williams made a mental mistake by fouling Wade five seconds later, forgetting that the score was tied.

As a reserve, he was in the game because he was playing better than starter Steve Nash, but he got badly outplayed by Wade at the end.

"Dwyane played great. He played hard and he was attacking,'' Williams said. "That's why he was the MVP.''

Williams has grown into one of the league's best, a major reason why the Jazz are making a serious run in the Western Conference, elevating his game to an All-Star level.

Unlike most of the other All-Stars, Williams already had spent time in this monstrous Cowboys Stadium, watching his favorite football team play the New York Giants back in September. He looked surprisingly comfortable for a first-time All-Star.

With Dirk Nowitzki of the Dallas Mavericks serving as the unofficial host, and more notable Chris Bosh also returning to his hometown of Dallas, Williams was able to stay in the background leading up to Sunday's game.

"This was a great experience for me, a great first All-Star Game,'' Williams said. "It just hope it's the first of many in my career.''