NEW YORK — Kawhi Leonard and Paul George of the Los Angeles Clippers were chosen as All-Star reserves Thursday, while the Minnesota Timberwolves and New York Knicks also had two players selected.
Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns of the Western Conference-leading Timberwolves will be going to the Feb. 18 game in Indianapolis. Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry is an All-Star for the 10th time, while the Los Angeles Lakers’ Anthony Davis and the Phoenix Suns’ Devin Booker rounded out the West reserves.
Stevenson alumnus Jalen Brunson was selected for the first time and was joined by teammate Julius Randle from the Knicks, who went 14-2 in January. The East had two other first-time selections in the Philadelphia 76ers’ Tyrese Maxey and the Orlando Magic’s Paolo Banchero, with the Cleveland Cavaliers’ Donovan Mitchell, the Boston Celtics’ Jaylen Brown and the Miami Heat’s Bam Adebayo joining them.
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The West is the far more experienced squad. Curry tied Hall of Famer Paul Arizin’s Warriors franchise record for most selections, while Davis, a Perspectives alumnus, and George — who will be returning to his original NBA home in Indiana — are All-Stars for the ninth time. Leonard is a six-time selection.
The starters were announced last week. The Milwaukee Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard will be joined in the East by the 76ers’ Joel Embiid, the Celtics’ Jayson Tatum and Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton.
The West starters are the Lakers’ LeBron James, the Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic and the Suns’ Kevin Durant in the frontcourt with guards Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks.
The reserves were selected through voting by head coaches in each conference. They had to choose three frontcourt players, two guards and two other players, regardless of position.
That wasn’t enough to bring a number of worthy players putting up big numbers in an era when teams are piling them up nightly. Among those not selected for the game were the Atlanta Hawks’ Trae Young, averaging 27 points and 10.9 assists, or the Sacramento Kings duo of Domantas Sabonis, the NBA’s leading rebounder, and De’Aaron Fox.
The NBA-leading Celtics and Timberwolves both hoped to have three All-Stars, but neither Boston’s Derrick White nor Minnesota’s Rudy Gobert was chosen.
The Wolves had to settle for having two All-Stars for the fifth time in franchise history, the first since Towns and Jimmy Butler in 2018.
If any players are injured and can’t play, Commissioner Adam Silver chooses their replacement. Randle is likely out because of a dislocated right shoulder that is expected to sideline him through the All-Star break.
Brian Mahoney , 2024-02-02 01:51:40
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