NEW ORLEANS - Something about Terrence Ross in the spotlight still seems unnatural, though he has proven that hes worthy of the attention. On Saturday night hell only take up a third of it when he aims to defend his Slam Dunk title in the new-look contest, taking place at New Orleans Smoothie King Center. A year ago, Ross defeated reigning champion and little-known Jazz forward Jeremy Evans in a fan vote, breathing some new life into a floundering competition. But does he see himself as the defending champ? "I only do that just because thats what everybody calls me or they always ask me if Im going to defend my championship," said the Raptors modest and soft-spoken sophomore, who was reluctant to re-enter the contest this season, though he felt obligated to. "I have to. I just feel like if you win a championship you have to defend it." This year hell share the court with a few more familiar faces. For the first time in 26 years, the Slam Dunk contest will feature three All-Stars, two of which compete on a team with Ross as the event takes on a controversial new format. Teaming up with a couple of Eastern Conference All-Stars in Paul George and John Wall, Ross squad will oppose All-Star Swiss Army knife Damian Lillard and the Wests Harrison Barnes and Ben McLemore. The contests first round, a 90-second freestyle showcase, will force the teams to work together and assist on each others dunks. Ross met with his teammates Thursday evening to rehearse and formulate a strategy. All three say theyre ready to go. "We got our game plan ready," said the Pacers George, an All-Star starter. "Were all going to have fun with it, were all going to be a part of one anothers dunks so itll be a fun game." In the second round the East dunkers will go head-to-head with the competitors from the West until a team of three is crowned champion. Fans will then vote for the "Dunker of the Night" from the winning team. Intended to spice up an event thats lost its luster, the twist is one that may take some getting used to, one that not everyone is on board with. The participants, as you would expect, have high hopes for the new format. "I personally like [the new format]," Ross said. "A lot of people dont like it but after they see whats going to happen, how the dunks are going to turn out everybodys going to like it." "I think it makes it more fun," Lillard agreed. "Its a little bit less pressure on each individual dunker, its a little more of a group thing and a team thing." However, not everyone is so optimistic. "I just feel like the dunk contest from back in the day has always been pretty simple and thats what made it good," said All-Star forward Blake Griffin, who won the 2011 competition after jumping over the hood of a Kia. "So I dont know how I feel about putting in a lot of extra stuff. I think it should just be get out there and let them dunk. I think theyve made it a little too rigid. Just kind of make it more free and let guys have more fun with it and I think theyll get better results out of it." Whether you love it, hate it, sit somewhere in between or are reserving judgment, the NBA will take another stab at reinventing an event that is still haunted by the memory of Vince Carters iconic performance in 2000. 14 years after that fateful night in Oakland, Carters show-stopping dunks remain a hot topic of conversation at All-Star weekend. At the time it was exactly what the dunk-off needed, problem is Carter set the bar too high. "It was almost like he made it feel like it wasnt a dunk contest," said Ross, who was just nine years old when he watched Carter make history. "It was kind of like a clinic or like a tutorial, how he just went out there and every dunk he did was like first try, done, 50. It was unreal to see because you havent seen anybody shut down a dunk contest since." No one has topped it and perhaps no one ever will. All the format changes in the world wont change that but an infusion of young talent and star power could. With Ross, the defending champ, facing off against three brand-name players, theres more excitement going into this weekends event than there has been in years past. Still, everyone is clamouring to see a certain MVP throw his hat in the ring. "LeBron (James) would make the Dunk Contest so much more exciting," Ross admitted. "He would have people hanging from the ceiling just to try to get in and watch it. The atmosphere would probably be unreal and thats something I would like to experience. If he ever does it I would sign up again for it. Hopefully one day he does it." He has a Dunk Contest trophy on his shelf and a 51-point game on his resume, yet Ross is still getting comfortable with the attention. It took him a little while to allow his excitement to build up and come out but with a new format and fresh competition, the 23-year-old finally has his game face on. Better late than never. "Thats even more incentive for me to go in now and try to do it again," he said. "Its like a new contest." . Bryant, who signed a five-year, $34 million contract as a free agent with Cleveland in March, reported symptoms on Monday morning, a team spokesman said. [url=http://www.dolphinsjerseysofficialshop.com/black-friday-earl-mitchell-jerse... Mitchell Jersey . LOUIS -- Roman Polak was celebrating even before Alexander Steen scored the winning goal in Saturdays 4-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes. http://www.dolphinsj... . Peter Holland and Brad Staubitz were sent to Toronto on Saturday as the Maple Leafs traded defenceman Jesse Blacker and draft picks to the Anaheim Ducks. [url=http://www.dolphinsjerseysofficialshop.com/black-ndamukong-suh-dolphins-Jer... Suh Dolphins Jersey . Kyle Denbrook, a soccer player from Saint Marys University, took the CIS male athlete of the week honour. Stanley, a fourth-year business administration student from Charlottetown, scored both goals in a 2-0 win over Dalhousie on Friday and tallied again in a 1-0 win over Saint Marys on Sunday. . -- Nathan Pancel scored twice as the Sudbury Wolves defeated the North Bay Battalion 4-2 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action.PITTSBURGH -- Their quarterback basically has a dislocated right index finger, their best remaining offensive lineman suffered a sprained right pectoral muscle and theyre 0-4. But the Pittsburgh Steelers remained a confident group Tuesday heading into a bye week. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger hit his right hand off a defensive linemans hand after a touchdown pass to Jerricho Cotchery in the fourth quarter during Sundays 34-27 loss to Minnesota, but he didnt expect the injury to be anything long-term. "The doc said it was a subluxation, whatever that is," Roethlisberger said Tuesday, as he only had tape on his right forefinger. "Yeah, it (hurt). It was kind of uncomfortable. It was pretty painful." Its a good bet that Roethlisberger wont do anything too strenuous this week, and neither will left offensive guard Ramon Foster. An MRI Monday revealed that Foster suffered a minor sprain of the right pectoral muscle during the first half. Foster isnt concerned about missing any time. Neither of those health issues, nor their worst start in 45 years, have deterred the Steelers. However, Roethlisberger still believed that as one of the NFLs four winless teams -- along with Tampa Bay, Jacksonville and the New York Giants -- the Steelers were among the leagues worst. "I was talking record-wise, and if Im not mistaken were one of the -- I dont know how many teams are winless, and Im a big believer in wins and losses and not numbers -- but I would say that record-wise,, were one of the worst teams in the NFL," Roethlisberger said.dddddddddddd "I dont think thats a far stretch. "I take pride in winning football games, more than any numbers. So, thats what Ive based my career on so far, wins and losses. So, it definitely stings. (And) its painful to lose games, but Ill put that on myself." So, is there anything to feel good about during this bye week? "The people that we have in here, theyre good players," Roethlisberger said. "Obviously, were down, and were disappointed. It hurts, but I dont think our confidence is low." Maybe, but the Steelers find themselves in the unique position of playing second fiddle in their own city to the playoff-bound Pittsburgh Pirates. The Pirates were to make their first post-season appearance in 21 years on Tuesday night against Cincinnati. Steelers defensive end Brett Keisel, who has a pair of Super Bowl rings, advised the Pirates to "continue to do what youve been doing all year to get to this point. Dont change the team that you have. Dont change the way that youve been preparing. Just keep doing the things that youve done up to this point." Was that his message to his own teammates as well? "I dont know," Keisel said. "Were going to continue to work and find a way. Were going to continue to fight. When youre 0-4, youre always looking for things to try to figure out how to get a win. "And were going to continue to do that around here. [url=http://www.cheapjerseyscustom.us.com/]cheap custom jerseys wholesale jerseys store cheap jerseys Cheap Jerseys wholesale jerseys ' ' '