Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant selected to 15th NBA All-Star Game
PHOENIX (AZFamily/AP) — Phoenix Suns superstar Kevin Durant is moving up a historic list.
The 36-year-old was selected on Thursday to his 15th career NBA All-Star game, which ties for the fourth-most in league history alongside Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett and Shaquille O’Neal.
He only trails Lebron James, who also on Thursday was picked for his 21st All-Star selection, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (19) and Kobe Bryant (18).
Through 33 games this season, Durant is averaging 27.2 points (6th in the NBA) on 52.3% shooting from the field, 6.5 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.4 blocks.
On Oct. 26, he reached 29,000 career points and as of Thursday, is 180 points away from 30,000 points.
Only seven other players have reached that milestone.
The other starters:
- New York’s Jalen Brunson and Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell as the Eastern Conference guards.
- Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, Boston’s Jayson Tatum and New York’s Karl-Anthony Towns as the East frontcourt players.
- Golden State’s Stephen Curry and NBA leading scorer Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as Western Conference guards.
- Denver’s Nikola Jokic joins Durant as the West frontcourt players alongside James.
The starters were picked through a system of weighted balloting: 50% was fan voting, 25% was a media panel and 25% was voting by current players.
There are 14 more All-Stars yet to be announced, and they’ll be chosen in a vote of the league’s head coaches. That list will be revealed on Jan. 30, and the All-Star Game — now games, really — happens in San Francisco on Feb. 16.
Among the candidates for those reserve spots: San Antonio’s Victor Wembanyama, the Lakers’ Anthony Davis, reigning All-Star Game MVP Damian Lillard of Milwaukee, Miami’s Tyler Herro, Atlanta’s Trae Young and Charlotte’s LaMelo Ball — who led East guard fan voting.
There will be at least 15 different players who “start” at the All-Star Game this season. It’s the first year of a new All-Star format, with three games. The 24 All-Stars will be drafted into three teams of eight players apiece by TNT personalities and former NBA greats O’Neal, Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith.
Those three teams will be entered into a four-team tournament, with the remaining squad made up of NBA rookies and second-year players from the Rising Stars event on All-Star Friday. There are two semifinal games, with the winners meeting in a championship game. The games should go quickly; the first team to reach 40 points wins.
The last two All-Star Games rewrote the offensive record books. Boston’s Tatum set an individual record with 55 points in 2023, and last year’s final score was 211-186 — the highest-scoring All-Star Game ever.
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