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LeBron James will play in the NBA All-Star game for the 19th time, and with that, he has reached Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the number of participants in the "all-star game" that will be held in Salt Lake City this year. The Los Angeles Lakers basketball player received the most votes and will be the captain of his team, while the player with the most votes in the East, Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks, will lead the second team.
James was the captain in all five previous All-Star games with this format, while Antetokounmpo was the leader of his team in 2019 and 2020. Durant, who is an All-Star for the 13th time, could miss the game for a third straight season due to injury, after suffering an MCL sprain on Jan.
8. "I was just like, 'S---, another year of not playing against my old teammates. Another year of, at that point, maybe missing the All-Star Game and not playing against Lebron James at home,'" Durant said earlier this week, via ESPN.
"Stuff like that that I look forward to. ... On top of just playing every game, I just look forward to that stuff. But it's part of basketball as well."
Irving thanked the fans for voting him as an All-Star
"I would not be here without y'all," Irving said of the fans. "Y'all voted me in, I'm ready to give a show.
And it just shows the community power of just what I've been able to build over time. In an international community voting, obviously this community here in America, but I feel like I've put in enough work to be deserving this year and I think I just want that to continue to speak for itself.
Just let my work speak for itself." It is interesting that the great Joel Embiid, who will be among the reserves, is not among the 10 selected. They will be elected on February 2. Eastern Conference starters:
- Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks)
- Kevin Durant (Brooklyn Nets)
- Jayson Tatum (Boston Celtics)
- Donovan Mitchell (Cleveland Cavaliers)
- Kyrie Irving (Brooklyn Nets)
- LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers)
- Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets)
- Zion Williamson (New Orleans Pelicans)
- Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors)
- Luka Doncic (Dallas Mavericks)