NBA All-Star Game 2018 Starters Revealed: LeBron James, Stephen Curry To Captain Eastern & Western Conference
As of Thursday night, the official NBA All-Star Game 2018 starters were revealed and include the top players one might expect to see leading the way. Leading the Eastern Conference team will be the Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron James, while Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors will lead the Western Conference stars. James will be joined by his former All-Star teammate, while Curry is joined by his current All-Star teammate on their respective starting lineups.
The latest All-Star starting lineups were revealed on TNT Thursday evening ahead of a doubleheader of NBA basketball games. LeBron James will be the captain of the East’s team and will participate in his 14th All-Star Game for his career. In addition to “King” James, the Eastern Conference lineup will also include Giannis Antetounmkpo of the Milwaukee Bucks, Kyrie Irving of the Boston Celtics, DeMar DeRozan of the Toronto Raptors, and Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers.
DeRozan will appear in his fourth career All-Star Game, while Irving is making his fifth appearance in the annual game, but first as a member of the Boston Celtics. Meanwhile, Embiid will be participating in his first career All-Star Game. For the “Greek Freak,” it’s his second-straight start.
The 2018 #NBAAllStar Team Captains!#TeamLeBron#TeamStephen pic.twitter.com/EueKozEKE8
— #NBAAllStar (@NBAAllStar) January 18, 2018
As the leading vote-getter and East captain, LeBron James will get to draft his choice of first player for his team from the available starters. The NBA on TNT crew talked about their thoughts on the latest starting lineups in several segments during their reveal show.
The #TNT crew reacts to the 2018 Eastern Conference #NBAAllStar starters. pic.twitter.com/2JLrlDsM5e
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) January 18, 2018
Over in the Western Conference, Stephen Curry will be leading the squad in his fifth-straight All-Star Game appearance. His Golden State teammate, Kevin Durant, will join him for his ninth-straight appearance in the game. New Orleans Pelicans’ big men DeMarcus Cousins and Anthony Davis were each selected to participate in another All-Star Game, based on their continued excellent play this season. Rounding out the Western Conference is Houston Rockets star, James Harden. For the NBA MVP finalist last season, it’s his sixth time heading to the big game.
That clearly leaves reigning NBA MVP Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder amongst the players who appears to have been snubbed, but there will still be more spots to be filled for the reserves. Other notable players missing from the lineup may include Draymond Green of the Warriors or LaMarcus Aldridge of the San Antonio Spurs. Aldridge has seemed to have returned to form since his previous All-Star days, especially with Kawhi Leonard missing a good number of games this season.
The #TNT crew reacts to the 2018 Western Conference #NBAAllStar starters. pic.twitter.com/rZHTQVkhCH
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) January 18, 2018
The NBA All-Star Game 2018 is scheduled to take place on Sunday, February 18, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The NBA All-Star Game reserve players are set to be announced on January 23. From there, LeBron and Steph will go back and forth drafting their teams from the available players. Fans will find out who the East and West All-Star captains draft to participate on their respective teams in the newly-unveiled format of the All-Star Game in the coming weeks.
