NBA All-Star Game 2021: As Team LeBron takes on Team Durant, all you need to know

In a few hours from now, at Atlanta’s State Farm Arena the heavily-stacked Team LeBron will tip off against the equally fearsome Team Durant in the 2021 All-Star Game.

The build-up to this year’s All-Star Game has been unusual, to say the least, with superstars like LeBron James criticising the exhibition game as a ‘slap in the face’ given the pandemic situation in USA.

Given the pandemic, the traditional All-Star weekend has been compressed into a day-long affair this year.

Here’s all you need to know about the 2021 NBA All-Star Game:

What is the NBA All-Star Game?

The NBA All-Star Game is an exhibition game held in the middle of the season each year pitting the biggest names in the league. Two teams of 12 stars each face off in the All-Star Game. The players are selected by voting from fans, players and accredited media. The two players polling the highest votes are made the captain and then get to pick their teams.

What are the teams this year?

This year Team LeBron, picked and led by LeBron James, will take on Team Durant, picked by Kevin Durant, who will not take the court as he’s injured.

Team LeBron’s starters are LA Lakers’ James, Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks), Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors), Luka Doncic (Dallas Mavericks) and Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets). Jaylen Brown (Boston), Paul George (LA Clippers), Rudy Gobert (Utah), Damian Lillard (Portland), Chris Paul (Phoenix), Ben Simmons (Philadelphia) and Domantas Sabonis (Indiana) will also be part of the squad coached by Utah Jazz’s Quin Snyder.

Team Durant’s starters are Kyrie Irving (Brooklyn Nets), Kawhi Leonard (LA Clippers), Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers), Bradley Beal (Washington Wizards) and Jayson Tatum (Boston Celtics) while James Harden (Brooklyn), Zion Williamson (New Orleans), Zach LaVine (Chicago), Mike Conley (Utah), Donovan Mitchell (Utah), Julius Randle (New York) and Nikola Vucevic (Orlando) are also part of the squad coached by Philadelphia’s Doc Rivers. The team has had stars like Devin Booker (Phoenix), and Anthony Davis (LA Lakers) miss out due to injury, just like team captain Durant.

Five players who have combined to win 10 of the last 12 regular-season MVP awards are All-Stars this season: James (4 MVPs), Curry (2), Antetokounmpo (2), Durant (1) and  Harden (1).

What’s the format of the All-Star Game?

The format for the first three quarters is as follows:

The format for the final quarter is as follows:

What other events will be alongside the All-Star Game?

The Skills Challenge, 3-Point Contest and the Dunk Contest will also be held on Monday. Both the Skills Challenge and 3-Point Contest will take place pre-game, while the Dunk Contest will be held at half-time of the actual game.

The NBA Rising Stars, the league’s annual showcase of premier young talent during NBA All-Star, will not be played this year due to the limitation of having All-Star events all on one night.

Will the 2021 NBA All-Star Game be broadcast on TV in India?

Unfortunately, the 2021 NBA All-Star Game will not be broadcast on television in India. However, fans wanting to catch the All-Star extravaganza can catch the action on NBA’s streaming service, NBA League Pass.

Who will compete in the 3-point contest?

Mike Conley (Utah), Jaylen Brown (Boston), Stephen Curry (Warriors), Zach LaVine (Chicago), Donovan Mitchell (UTA) and Jayson Tatum (Boston) will compete in the 3-point contest.

Who will compete in the Slam Dunk contest?

The Slam Dunk contest is guaranteed a first-time winner with Anfernee Simons (Portland), Cassius Stanley (Indiana) and Obi Toppin (New York) competing for the title.

Who will compete in the Skills Challenge?

Robert Covington (Portland), Luka Doncic (Dallas), Chris Paul (Phoenix), Julius Randle (New York), Domantas Sabonis (Indiana) and Nikola Vucevic (Orlando) will compete in the Skills Challenge.

Raising money for charity

As part of NBA All-Star 2021, NBA will support Historically Black Colleges and Universities and communities of colour disproportionately impacted by . More than $3 million will be contributed to the HBCU community through the Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF), UNCF (United Negro College Fund), National Association for Equal Opportunity (NAFEO) and Direct Relief’s Fund for Health Equity.

Team LeBron will play for TMCF and Team Durant will play for UNCF as their respective All-Star beneficiary. A total of $1.75 million will be contributed to the two organisations.

Each organisation will receive an initial $5,00,000 contribution. At the end of each of the first three quarters, an additional $1,50,000 will be awarded to the leading team’s organisation – totalling $4,50,000 for those three quarters. A remaining $3,00,000 will be awarded to the organisation of the team that wins the NBA All-Star Game. The winner of the NBA All-Star Game will be the first team to reach or surpass the Final Target Score.

LeBron’s All-Star numbers

LA Lakers’ superstar James will be making his 17th All-Star appearance. This will make him the player with the third-most All-Star appearances behind Kareem Abdul Jabbar (19) and Kobe Bryant (18).

This is the 17th consecutive time James has been selected as an All-Star – putting him just one behind Kobe (18 straight) for the longest streak ever. James’ streak began in his second NBA season (2004-05).

When he takes the court in a few hours as the captain of Team LeBron, it will be his 17th All-Star start, thereby extending his record. He passed Kobe last year to grab the record.

Other notable facts

Pelicans’ Zion Williamson is set to become the first All-Star born in the 2000s. He’s also set to be the fourth-youngest player to play in an All-Star Game (20 years, 244 days on day of 2021 ASG).

A record nine international players are All-Stars. This includes a record five who have been voted to start: Milwaukee’s Antetokounmpo (Greece), Dallas’ Luka Doncic (Slovenia), Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid (Cameroon), Brooklyn’s Kyrie Irving (Australia), and Denver’s Nikola Jokic (Serbia). The four reserves are Utah’s Rudy Gobert (France), Indiana’s Domantas Sabonis (Lithuania), Philadelphia’s Ben Simmons (Australia), and Orlando’s Nikola Vucevic (Montenegro).