LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo have gone against each other at the All-Star games in the past two years, but this time around, they will be teammates.
James had the first pick in the 2021 NBA All-Star Game draft on Thursday night and didn’t hesitate to use it on Antetokounmpo. The Lakers superstar then added an intimidating backcourt in Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors) and Luka Doncic (Dallas Mavericks) with his next two picks before finishing off his starting lineup with Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets).
Kevin Durant, who captains the East team but won’t play because of hamstring issues, went with his teammate Kyrie Irving as the first pick. He then paired Irving with NBA leading scorer Bradley Beal (Washington Wizards), at the guard position, and also got the Philadelphia 76ers’ Joel Embiid, the LA Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard, and the Boston Celtics’ Jayson Tatum.
From the reserves pool, KD unsurprisingly went with his second Nets teammate James Harden and continued to focus on scorers by selecting Devin Booker (Phoenix Suns), Zion Williamson (NO Pelicans), Zach LaVine (Chicago Bulls), Julius Randle (NY Knicks), Nikola Vucevic (Orlando Magic) and Donovan Mitchell (Utah Jazz).
James, on the other hand, went with a more balanced approach. He selected the Portland Trail Blazers’ Damian Lillard, the 76ers’ Ben Simmons, the Suns’ Chris Paul, the Celtics’ Jaylen Brown, the Clippers’ Paul George, the Indiana Pacers’ Sabonis, and the Jazz’s Rudy Gobert.
The 2021 NBA All-Star game will take place in Atlanta’s State Farm Arena. Besides the bragging rights, the winning team will secure a contribution to a charity of their choice. James selected Thurgood Marshall College Fund in case his team wins while Durant’s team is playing to help the Negro College Fund.
You can check out the entire video of the draft below.
