Tag: 2024 nba all-star game

Here are the 3 WNBA players bringing the buckets to the 2024 NBA All-Star Celebrity Game

The WNBA is full of hoopers. Even in a celebrity game, buckets will be had.

Hoopers want to be around other hoopers, and that includes teaming up at the NBA All-Star game. The event, scheduled for later this month, will host several of the NBA’s best, but the WNBA is also making an appearance. A’ja Wilson, Natasha Cloud, and Jewell Loyd will be part of the 2024 All-Star Celebrity Game.

Buzz is building around the NBA All-Star game and its accompanying events, and it seems the league understands that if you want to make things intriguing, invite the WNBA.

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Just days ago, Steph Curry challenged Sabrina Ionescu to a 3-point contest, and she eagerly accepted. Now, her fellow hoopers are getting in on the action by agreeing to play in the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game. A’ja Wilson will coach new Phoenix Mercury guard Natasha Cloud on Stephen A. Smith’s team, and Jewell Loyd will play for Shannon Sharpe.

Here is the full breakdown for each team. If nobody is saying it out loud, these rosters will be full of buckets. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.

Team roster image courtesy of the WNBA.

Report: Jaylen Brown ‘seriously considering’ entering NBA Slam Dunk Contest

Will Boston Celtics superstar Jaylen Brown suit up for the 2024 NBA Slam Dunk Contest?

Boston Celtics superstar Jaylen Brown is reportedly interested in participating in this year’s NBA Slam Dunk Contest. According to the Athletic’s Shams Charania, Brown is “seriously considering” entering the annual showcase. He would become the first All-Star to take part in the dunk contest since 2017 and the first Celtic since Gerald Green in 2007.

“Brown has been mulling over the possibility for several weeks and appears to be very much in play.” Charania reported. Brown is already headed to All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis in a few weeks. He and Jayson Tatum are both set to represent the Eastern Conference during the All-Star Game itself.

Brown, who is known to unleash pretty ferocious slams, may be looking to add to his resume with a trip to the dunk contest as well.

The NBA unveiled a jaw-dropping LED court for All-Star Weekend and the future is here

This is a VERY cool court.

The NBA has unveiled an LED court that they will use during All-Star Weekend at events hosted by Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

Although the NBA All-Star Game will be held at Gainbridge Fieldhouse (the home of the Pacers and the Fever) and will not feature the LED court, the rest of the weekend festivities will be at the NFL stadium where the Colts play.

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That means the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game, the Skills Challenge, the 3-Point Contest, and the Slam Dunk Contest will all take place on an amazing LED court. (The one-on-one shooting contest, Stephen vs. Sabrina, will also happen on the special court.)

We saw FIBA install similar glass courts during the U19 Women’s Basketball World Cup last year and it was an exciting glimpse into the future.

The court that the NBA will use, which was developed by the German company ASB GlassFloor, will add an enhanced experience for fans in-arena and those watching the TNT broadcast.

It will allow for design and color changes, live replays, game stats, location-based player tracking animations, and other animations.

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Even Doc Rivers can’t believe he’s the NBA All-Star Game coach after just 1 win with the Bucks

Doc Rivers wants to pass on the All-Star Game.

Doc Rivers has been the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks for all of three games, but he’s already the recipient of one of the rewards that comes with coaching a team led by Giannis Antetokounmpo — if you want to call it a reward.

With their win over the Dallas Mavericks Saturday — Rivers’ first since taking over for Adrian Griffin — the Bucks clinched the Eastern Conference’s second-best record through Feb. 4. That means their coaching staff will be headed to the All-Star Game on Feb. 18. The honor usually goes to the first-place team, but the Boston Celtics were ineligible after coaching the East all-stars last year.

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That left the job to the Bucks and Rivers, who was just as miffed as everyone else. He said he’ll give the bonus money and All-Star ring to Griffin.

“That is ridiculously bad. It really is,” Rivers said. “Well, Adrian’s gonna get some money. That’s for sure. And a ring. You know, it’s one of these quirky things. I think there should be a rule somehow that someone else does it other than me. Maybe I’ll send my staff, and I’ll go on vacation.”

Did Boston’s Jaylen Brown deserve to make an All-Star team?

This epic flop on Brown’s part elicited the predictable crowd of vocal critics.

Almost as soon as it was known that he would be an NBA All-Star for the 2024 contest, star Boston Celtics forward Jaylen Brown delivered one of the worst performances of his 2023-24 season vs. the Los Angeles Lakers.

This epic flop on Brown’s part elicited the predictable crowd of vocal critics pondering whether the Georgia native truly deserved his nod due to one bad game. As maddening as that might be (and was, more or less, the same response to his historic supermax contract extension), could there be a case that the Cal alum is a tad overrated? Or are the recent mediocre outings that have popped up for Brown simply the result of a long regular season?

After Jaylen Brown made his third All-Star team, CLNS Media reporters Bobby Manning and Josue Pavon discussed if he really deserved it after the Celtics 114-105 loss to the Lakers where Brown struggled on a recent episode of the “Garden Report” podcast.

Take a look at the clip embedded above to hear what they had to say.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Domantas Sabonis will miss a $1.3 million bonus for not making the 2024 NBA All-Star Game

This is a costly omission for the Sacramento Kings big man.

Sacramento Kings big man Domantas Sabonis was one of the most surprising players not selected for the 2024 NBA All-Star Game.

The three-time All-Star had tough competition to represent the Western Conference. Sabonis ranked top-10 among all frontcourt players in the West when it came to fan voting, player voting, and media voting.

That put him ahead of Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns in weighted rank, but reserves are chosen by the 30 coaches in the NBA. Towns made the team (perhaps surprisingly) while Sabonis was not selected.

But his omission was the most costly among the potential candidates. As noted by ESPN’s Bobby Marks, not making the All-Star Game will cost him a $1.3 million bonus from the Kings.

Sabonis currently ranks fifth-best among all NBA players in win shares, which is an advanced catch-all metric that measures overall value to a team. He trails only MVP frontrunners Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid.

Perhaps the big man could get a nod for the All-Star Game, and a bonus, as a potential injury replacement if Anthony Davis (who has now missed multiple games in a row due to injury) or another player from the West cannot play in Indiana.

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10 potential All-Star injury replacements (Trae Young!) for Joel Embiid and Julius Randle in the East

Trae Young deserves a trip to Indiana for the NBA All-Star Game.

The starters and reserves were announced for the 2024 NBA All-Star Game and several players were snubbed.

Two players (Joel Embiid and Julius Randle) in the Eastern Conference, however, are currently injured and are likely not expected back in time for the festivities in Indianapolis on Feb. 18.

Randle is out with a dislocated shoulder while Embiid was diagnosed with a devastating meniscus injury following a controversial return to play after he was a late scratch from a game against Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets.

While it is unclear how long Embiid will remain sidelined, in all likelihood, both players will require replacements in Indiana. Considering that Embiid and Randle are big men, at least one replacement will likely come from the frontcourt.

Here are some of the top candidates that NBA commissioner Adam Silver could consider when he makes his decision:

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Jaylen Brown named to 2024 Eastern Conference All-Star Team

Jaylen Brown will join fellow Celtic Jayson Tatum in Indianapolis after being named a 2024 Eastern Conference All-Star.

The reserves for the 2024 NBA All-Star Game were announced Thursday night, and another member of the Boston Celtics is set to join Jayson Tatum out in Indianapolis. Jaylen Brown was selected to represent the Eastern Conference and will make his third appearance at the league’s annual showcase.

Tatum was selected a starter last week thanks to a combination of fan, player, and media voting. Reserves, meanwhile, are chosen by coaches around the association, with seven players ultimately making the cut. Boston’s Derrick White and Kristaps Porzingis were in the mix to make the team, but were not selected in the end, although they could still make the team as injury replacements.

Donovan Mitchell of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle of the New York Knicks, Bam Adebayo of the Miami Heat, Tyrese Maxey of the Philadelphia 76ers, and Paolo Banchero of the Orlando Magic were also named as reserves for the Eastern Conference All-Stars.

These are the top NBA players who were snubbed for the 2024 All-Star Game, including Domantas Sabonis

Some of these players will get the nod from the commissioner as injury replacements.

The list of 2024 NBA All-Stars was now announced by the NBA on TNT’s crew and several noteworthy players did not make the list.

We already knew the 10 starters for the game in Indianapolis on Feb. 18. Those players were chosen based on weighted voting by fans (50 percent), the media (25 percent), and other players (25 percent).

Seven more players from each conference got the call that they as well. Those candidates were selected based on voting by the 30 coaches in the league. But that left some big names on the outside looking in.

Here is a look at the players who perhaps could have made the 2023 NBA All-Star Game but did not:

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Tatum thankful for fans after Celtics mark All-Star nod with brief in-game celebration

Jayson Tatum expressed his gratitude after the Celtics marked his recent All-Star nod with a brief in-game celebration.

Boston Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum was named a starter for the 2024 NBA All-Star Game earlier this week, his fifth All-Star nod as a pro. Tatum was one of the top vote getters among fans, securing his trip to Indianapolis for the league’s annual showcase.

Saturday night was Tatum’s first home game since the starters for the game were officially announced. During a timeout halfway through the first quarter of Boston’s loss to the visiting Los Angeles Clippers, the team’s PA announcer congratulated Tatum, ushering in a loud ovation from fans. Following the game, Tatum was asked about the moment.

“That was great,” Tatum said. “It was very special.”