All-Star Friday is about showcasing the league’s newest faces. Saturday belongs to the specialists. But Sunday? Sunday is when the biggest stars in the NBA get to shine brightest on the biggest stage that the regular season has to offer.
This season, we’re moving back to the classic format for the All-Star Game. No more Elam Ending. No more captain drafts. Just the basic East vs. West format that the league has used for most of its history. Of course, after six years of drafts, that change is going to be felt now more than ever. For the first time since 2017, conference pride is on the line.
So what do you need to know about the 2024 All-Star Game, and how can you tune in? Here are all of the basics ranging from viewing information to storylines to, ultimately, our pick for the game.
How to watch: 2024 NBA All-Star Game
Date: Sunday, Feb. 18 | Time: 8 p.m. ET
Location: Gainbridge Fieldhouse — Indianapolis, Indiana
TV and live stream: TNT and TNT app
Storylines
East: It wouldn’t quite be fair to call this a changing of the guard in the East. Mainstays like Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jayson Tatum are still here, and Joel Embiid would be if he were healthy. However, this is one of the youngest and least experienced sets of All-Stars a conference has ever produced. There are four first-time All-Stars this year and all four of them come from the East: Jalen Brunson, Tyrese Maxey, Paolo Banchero and Scottie Barnes.
Damian Lillard is the only Eastern Conference All-Star in his 30’s, and if we’re being technical, he’s at least a new face to the East, as he’d spent his entire career in Portland prior to this season. Tyrese Haliburton and Bam Adebayo are both first-time starters. Given the youth at play here, we’re likely to see some iteration of this group of players for years to come in the East. A few faces will change here and there, but this looks like the beginning of an era for the Eastern Conference.
West: If the East roster is built around youth, then the West is built around experience. Stephen Curry will be participating in his 10th All-Star Game on Sunday, which is more than any East player, but less than two of his West teammates. Kevin Durant is taking the floor for the 14th time in an All-Star Game, a figure that would be remarkably impressive were it not for his fellow forward. LeBron James will officially become the first player to play in 20 All-Star Games when we tip off on Sunday, a record that may never be broken.
James turns 40 next season. Durant has had injury issues over the past several years. Even Curry is starting to age, despite what his numbers would have you believe. The Western Conference roster is a chance to celebrate the defining players of this era in NBA history. James, Curry and Durant are all closer to their last All-Star Game than their first, and reverting to conferences has allowed the three of them to play on the same All-Star Team for the first time. It may be an exhibition game, but chances to see three legends of their stature share a uniform are extremely rare and meant to be cherished.
Full Rosters
Now that we have gone over the format and the storylines that will define the 2024 All-Star Game, it’s time to talk about the most important part: the players.
Giannis Antetokounmpo will captain the Eastern Conference, while LeBron James will anchor the ship that is the Western Conference. The players that make up the All-Star Game, including injured stars and their replacements, are as follows:
East: Antetokounmpo (captain), Joel Embiid (injured, will not play), Tyrese Haliburton, Damian Lillard, Jayson Tatum, Bam Adebayo, Paolo Banchero, Scottie Barnes (injury replacement), Jaylen Brown, Jalen Brunson, Tyrese Maxey, Donovan Mitchell, Julius Randle (injured, will not play), Trae Young (injury replacement)
West: James (captain), Luka Doncic, Kevin Durant, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nikola Jokic, Devin Booker, Stephen Curry, Anthony Davis, Anthony Edwards, Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, Karl-Anthony Towns
Doc Rivers will coach the Eastern Conference along with his staff and Timberwolves‘ head coach Chris Finch and his staff will do the same for the West. Of the All-Stars named, Banchero, Maxey, Brunson and Barnes are first-timers.
Prediction
There’s no responsible way to actually make a pick for an exhibition game. However, if you’re the gambling sort, it’s worth noting here that the Western Conference is a three-point favorite. If we assume the non-competitive nature of most All-Star Games turns any one of them into a 50-50 proposition, the only sensible thing to do would be to grab those three points and hope for the best. Therefore, we’ll take the East in this one. The Pick: East +3
