2022 NBA All-Star Weekend wraps up Sunday night with the 71st All-Star Game. This year’s All-Star festivities, which got underway on Friday with the Celebrity Game and Rising Stars Challenge, are being held in Cleveland for the first time in 25 years. Obi Toppin and Karl-Anthony Towns were the big winners of NBA All-Star Saturday Night, capturing titles in the Slam Dunk and 3-point Contest, respectively. Now the league’s best players will go head-to-head on Sunday as the NBA celebrates its 75th anniversary.
The playground-style captain’s picks format is back, and this year’s game once again features Team LeBron against Team Durant. LeBron James and Kevin Durant earned that honor by being the players in their respective conferences with the most fan votes.
This is the fifth straight year that LeBron has been a captain and the second straight year that it’s Team LeBron vs. Team Durant. After Team LeBron secured a comfortable 170-150 win last year in Atlanta, Team Durant will be out for some revenge — even if the rosters aren’t the same.
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Ahead of the big night, here’s everything you need to know:
2022 NBA All-Star Game
Date: Sunday, Feb. 20 | Time: 8 p.m. ETLocation: Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse — Cleveland, OhioTV: TNT | Live stream: TNT appOdds: Team LeBron – 5.5 | Over/Under: 321.5
Featured Game | Team LeBron All Stars vs. Team Durant All Stars
Team LeBron
Starters
Reserves
Team Durant
Starters
Reserves
Kevin Durant, Brooklyn Nets (injured, not playing)Draymond Green, Golden State Warriors (injured, not playing)Devin Booker, Phoenix SunsKarl-Anthony Towns, Minnesota TimberwolvesZach LaVine, Chicago BullsKhris Middleton, Milwaukee BucksRudy Gobert, Utah JazzLaMelo Ball, Charlotte Hornets (injury replacement for Kevin Durant)DeJounte Murray, San Antonio Spurs (injury replacement for Draymond Green)
Format
A few years ago the league decided to go away from the traditional Eastern Conference vs. Western Conference matchup and the teams are now decided by a playground-style draft between two captains (the player in each conference with the most fan votes). This year that was LeBron James and Kevin Durant, and though the latter is not playing due to a knee injury, he still picked his team.
In addition, the format of the actual game has changed. The first three quarters will still be 12 minutes long, and the team that wins each quarter will be awarded a cash prize to go to charity. The fourth quarter, however, will be untimed and will use the Elam Ending.
Instead of playing to the final buzzer, the teams will play to a target score, which is determined by taking the leading team’s point total after three quarters and adding 24 points. For example, if Team LeBron is up 100-90 going into the fourth quarter, the winning score will be 124 points, and the first team to get there will win, regardless of how long it takes.
Prediction
This is the All-Star Game so both rosters are great, but you have to go with Team LeBron here. LeBron is arguably the best player of all-time, Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo are leading MVP candidates and DeMar DeRozan came into the break on a historic scoring run that even Wilt Chamberlain couldn’t match. They’re so stacked that Luka Doncic isn’t even in the starting lineup. Pick: Team LeBron
