A pair of New York Knicks were tapped for the NBA All-Star Game as New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson and power forward Karl-Anthony Towns were named starters from the Eastern Conference on Thursday.
Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell, Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum and Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo were the other starters selected from the East.
Out of the West, LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers was named to his 21st straight All-Star Game, joined by 15-time All-Star Kevin Durant (Phoenix), 11-time All-Star Stephen Curry (Golden State), three-time NBA Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic (Denver) and MVP frontrunner Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City).
Last year, James surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the most All-Star selections in league history.
Starters were determined by a combination of votes from fans, players and media. Two guards and three frontcourt players from each conference are being selected as starters.
The NBA All-Star Game is shifting to a four-team tournament with a pair of semifinal games and a final, and as a result the “starter” designation is more honorary than practical.
There will be four teams of eight players, with one comprised of the Rising Stars Game champions. The other three teams will be made of 24 total All-Star selections divided among three teams in a draft on Feb. 6. Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Smith will be the honorary general managers and team namesakes.
The Rising Stars team — made up of the best first- and second-year players and G League stars — will be called Team Candace, for WNBA legend Candace Parker.
Fourteen reserves, seven out of each conference, will be selected by the NBA’s head coaches and will be revealed on Jan. 30.
Gilgeous-Alexander leads the league with 32.0 points per game. Jokic, for his part, ranks top-three in scoring (30.1 ppg), rebounding (13.2 per game) and assists (9.9 per game).
As for the Knicks, the only team with two players named starters, Brunson has led the team with 26.0 points per game, good for ninth in the league. His 7.3 assists per game also rank ninth. Towns, acquired from the Minnesota Timberwolves a few weeks before the season, is at 25.1 ppg and ranks second in the NBA at 13.9 rebounds per contest.
