Better than that... Timberwolves forward Kevin Love now has reached two All-Star Games and was invited to participate in Saturday's three-point-shooting contest, all before his 24th birthday.

"I never thought he'd be this good of a shooter, this quick," Denver coach George Karl said. "But he has nights when he's automatic out there. I hate to say, but he looks like a poor man's Larry Bird, maybe better than a poor man's Larry Bird. A guy who rebounds the ball; Larry was a great rebounder. I don't think he has the passing skills Bird had, but his knack of playing inside and out is pretty impressive."

Mirroring Magic Ask Ricky Rubio why he plays point guard and he often mentions a Magic Johnson quote -- you make one person happy if you score the basket, you make two people happy if you make the pass -- he heard when he was young.

If you take away the 6-inch height difference, does Johnson see much of himself in Rubio?

"I do see a lot in him," he said. "He mirrors my game in that he has always got his head up, his eyes are always scanning the floor and he can make any type of pass. I think that's where we're similar -- we can make all types of different passes -- and he's always trying to create a shot for his teammates."

Likewise, I'm sure Rubio almost always mentions Phoenix's Steve Nash when asked about point guards who have influenced him.

Apparently, the admiration is mutual.

"I think Ricky is amazing," Nash said Friday when All-Star weekend kicked off in Orlando. "He's an incredibly skilled and creative player. He has a great feel for the game. He has a joy to his game that is refreshing, and if there are any similarities, it's a big compliment to me."