The 2024 NBA All-Star extravaganza commences this Feb 18 at the Pacers’ home arena in Indianapolis, Indiana. The NBA has announced the starters and the reserves for the contending teams in this prestigious event, with some pleasant surprises and a couple of questions.
The format returns to the classic match-up between the Eastern and the Western Conference. It departs from the pick-up game format used in previous All-Star episodes where the captains took turns picking the members of their respective teams. The return to the old format is another refreshing move designed to keep the NBA dynamic and full of energy. After the highly-successful In-Season Tourney the NBA introduced early in the season, this new-format All-Star rendition should perk up even more interest in this season’s games.
The starters for the East are: Giannis Antetokounmpo, (Milwaukee Bucks, captain), Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers), Jayson Tatum (Boston Celtics), Tyrese Haliburton (Indiana Pacers) and Damian Lillard (Milwaukee Bucks). The East reserves are: Jalen Brunson (New York Knicks), Donovan Mitchell (Cleveland Cavs), Jaylen Brown (Boston Celtics), Bam Adebayo (Miami Heat), Julius Randle (New York Knicks), Paolo Banchero (Orlando Magic), and Tyrese Maxey (Philadelphia 76ers).
For the West, the starters are: Lebron James (LA Lakers, captain), Kevin Durant (Phoenix Suns), Luka Doncic (Dallas Mavericks), Shae Gilgeous Alexander (Oklahoma Thunder) and Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets). The West reserves include: Anthony Edwards (Minnesota Timberwolves), Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors), Kawhi Leonard (LA Clippers), Anthony Davis (LA Lakers), Devin Booker (Phoenix Suns), Paul George (LA Clippers), and Karl Anthony Towns (Minnesota Timberwolves).
The East’s Joel Embiid and Julius Randle could miss the game due to injuries. The NBA will make an announcement on their possible replacement shortly. This will put the East in a relative disadvantage, even as Bam Adebayo moves up to start as the East center.
Among the players listed, 3 are first time all-stars: Jalen Brunson, Tyrese Maxey and Paolo Banchero. All three come from the East team. The introduction of new players in the elite ranks of the All-Stars augurs well for the league. Their growing game maturity assures us that there is a steady influx of talent that will keep the NBA alive in the years to come.
But there are some conspicuous absentees in the All-Star ranks as well. For the East, there’s Trae Young (Atlanta Hawks) and Kristaps Porzingis (Boston Celtics). For the west, there’s just too much talent that outstanding guys have been left out, such as: Domantas Sabonis and D’Aaron Fox (Sacramento Kings), Jamal Murray (Denver Nuggets), Rudy Gobert (Minnesota Twolves), Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson (New Orleans Pelicans), James Harden (LA Clippers), Alperen Sengun (Houston Rockets), Lauri Markannen (Utah Jazz); not to mention the 2 contenders for Rookie of the Year: Victor Wenbanyama (San Antonio Spurs) and Chet Holmgren (Oklahoma Thunder).
For some, what hurt their chances for the All-Star slot was the lackluster performance of their respective teams (Young, Ingram, Markannen). For some, it was injuries and the lack of playing time (Williamson, Murray). For others, it was the prevalence of teammates on the roster (Porzingis for the Celtics, Gobert for the Twolves, Harden for the Clippers). While for others, what worked against them was simply the preponderance of talent on the roster (Sabonis, Fox, Sengun).
Finally, you need to factor in the fan vote which gives players from big market teams a huge advantage. The cases of the Sacramento Kings’ Sabonis and Fox comes to mind here. Both players are producing outstanding numbers and are on a winning team; yet both got unceremoniously bumped off. Sabonis’ stats this year are far better than that of Anthony Davis, Karl Anthony Towns, or even Lebron James, but he lost in the fan vote. So with Fox, whose record is as good as Steph Curry’s.
But by and large, the NBA had got it right. It’s a good balance of talent and performance, with a healthy dose of fan popularity. Win some, lose some; but in the end, the general public should claim the win. It’s on to the 2024 NBA All-Star Games, folks, and we look forward to a great match-up.
Come Feb 18, watch 24 of the world’s best cagers display their talents on the 2024 NBA All-Star Game. Aside from that, the All-Star Weekend will also feature the usual Skills Challenge, the 3-Point Shootout (with an added special feature pitting Steph Curry against the WNBA’s record-breaking star, Sabrina Ionescu), the Slam Dunk Contest, and the Panini Rising Stars tiff featuring the leagues sophomores and rookies. Here’s hoping these stars dazzle us with real on-court action, and not make it a simple all-offense, no-defense round-robin affair.
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