[nightlyraver]

I don't know about "early in a major tournament", but in the smaller buy-in MTT's online you will routinely see a LAGgy BB move in with a fairly wide range, IMHO. What is important to realize, I believe, is that Hero's recent raises suggest that he's raising light and pushing around the smaller stacks. Villian has no information, on these facts, that suggests that Hero will call with a wide range. The all-in is either severely discouraging a call or is deceptively seeking a call with a big hand. From my observations, many bad players overbet like this with AA and KK. From a better player, I expect to be shown hands as weak as 98s. That said, I make this call against certain oponents, but not all.

Your assertion that you will be shown big pair many times really cuts both ways. Think about it, if you are in the blinds against a player who has been stealing a lot, why would you flat out move all-in w/ a big pair? With a bigg-ish stack, why not play out the hand after the flop instead of forcing the action?