The NBA takes the revamped All-Star Game format to the next level.
league and NBPA announced On Tuesday, the captains will select their teams from the All-Stars pool in a pre-game draft right before kickoff — just like on the playground. The draft will take place at 7:30 pm ET on February 19 at the Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City. The game must end at 20:00.
It looks like LeBron James and likely Giannis Antetokounmpo will have to look the players in the eye as some of them remain unselected at the end of the process.
The Pregame Draft is an update to the All-Star format adopted by the league in 2018. Until this year, the game always clashed between the Eastern Conference All-Star Game and the Western Conference All-Star Game. Starting in 2018, whoever received the most votes in each conference was elected captain, and then the captains chose the teams. But so far, they’ve done it in a studio segment that aired on TNT a few weeks before the game.
James has captained every season of the new format. He also posted a 5-0 record with his selected teams. He garnered an overwhelming majority in the Western Conference over Stephen Curry in the final ballot announced on January 19. Antetokounmpo, meanwhile, had a slight lead in the East over Kevin Durant, who has been sidelined with a knee injury since January. nine.
Fan-selected captains and starters will be announced on Thursday.
James will face pressure to select Los Angeles Lakers teammate Anthony Davis if Davis is named an All-Star and healthy enough to play. He has been sidelined with a leg injury since 23 December. Meanwhile, no one likes to be chosen last, especially in front of a crowd.
This should be fun and could provide some game motivation for players who have just picked a late pick.
Source: sports.yahoo.com