As the U.S. Secretary of Education, Harvard alum Arne S. Duncan ’86 is responsible for ensuring that the people of America receive a proper education. Friday night, Duncan continued to honor his job description from a new venue, schooling his competition at the 2014 NBA All-Star Celebrity Game in New Orleans.
Playing in the annual scrimmage for the fourth consecutive year, Duncan notched 20 points—a Celebrity Game record—to go along with 11 boards and six assists, leading the East squad to a 60-56 victory over the West.
His efforts earned him the MVP trophy, which was initially awarded to comedian Kevin Hart by virtue of a fan vote. Nonetheless, Hart recognized that the best performance of the night belonged to that of the Harvard grad and decided to pass along the honor.
After dominating play for most of the night, Duncan made the play of the game late in the fourth quarter. With just over four minutes remaining in the contest and his team trailing 54-53, Duncan received a pass from WNBA guard Skylar Diggins right outside the paint and immediately drew a double team.
Diggins cut to the basket, and Duncan delivered a no-look dish over his left shoulder, inches from the head of Michael Jordan (no, not that Michael Jordan—the actor Michael B. Jordan), to the WNBA star. She converted the highlight-reel pass into points as the East claimed a lead that it would not relinquish. Not only did Duncan’s pass help spark his team’s victory, the no-look dime led to the Secretary of Education trending on twitter and being featured on SportsCenter’s “Top 10 Plays.”
Duncan has now won all four of the celebrity competitions he has participated in, putting up monster numbers in the process. After playing just a small role in his debut in 2011, the forward has averaged 16.0 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 5.3 assists over his last three contests.
The Harvard graduate clearly has maintained some of his touch from his days in Cambridge. Duncan played three seasons for the Crimson basketball team from 1983-1987 and served as co-captain during his senior season. He averaged double-digit point totals in all three seasons, highlighted by his final year in which he tallied 16.9 points per game, earning a first-team Academic All-American nod.
Upon graduating from Harvard with a degree in sociology, Duncan began playing professional basketball for Australia’s National Basketball League for the Melbourne Eastside Spectres. The star decided to call it a career in 1991, but he has never officially parted ways with the game he loves. From pick-up games with the President to scrimmages against fellow prominent celebrities, basketball will always remain a part of Duncan’s life.
This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:
CORRECTION: April 15, 2014
An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated the class year of U.S. Secretary of Education Arne S. Duncan. In fact, Duncan was a member of the Class of 1986.
