NBA NEWS - Nets’ James Harden and Suns’ Chris Paul headline reserves for All-Star Game

Boston Celtics Forward Jayson Tatum is among the NBA All-Star Game reserves selected from the Eastern Conference - (Keith Allison photo)

New Orleans’ Zion Williamson - NBA photo   Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul - NBA photo   Brooklyn Nets guard James Harden - NBA photo

Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain exemplified how to play the game without Showtime hot-dogging. The two battled for over a decade during the 60's. Since that time no NBA center could compare to their brute talent - (Library of Congress photo) NR's All-time NBA's GREATEST TEAM

The 70th NBA All-Star Game will be played Sunday, March 7 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta and televised by TNT as part of NBA All-Star 2021, which will take place on one night. TNT’s NBA All-Star coverage will begin at 5 p.m. ET with TNT NBA Tip-Off followed by the Skills Challenge and 3-Point Contest starting at 6:30 p.m. ET. NBA All-Star Game coverage will begin at 8 p.m. ET, with Slam Dunk taking place at halftime - THIS DAY IN THE NBA

NEW YORK, N.Y. USA

Wednesday, February 24, 2021

Brooklyn Nets guard James Harden and Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul lead the list of 14 players selected by the NBA’s head coaches as reserves for the 2021 NBA All-Star Game. Harden has been named an All-Star for the ninth straight year and Paul has earned his 11th All-Star selection.

The 70th NBA All-Star Game will be played Sunday, March 7 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta and televised by TNT as part of NBA All-Star 2021, which will take place on one night. TNT’s NBA All-Star coverage will begin at 5 p.m. ET with TNT NBA Tip-Off followed by the Skills Challenge 3-Point Contest starting at 6:30 p.m. ET. NBA All-Star Game coverage will begin at 8 p.m. ET, with AT&T Slam Dunk taking place at halftime.

In addition to Harden, the NBA All-Star Game reserves selected from the Eastern Conference are Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown and forward Jayson Tatum, Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine, New York Knicks forward Julius Randle, Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons and Orlando Magic center Nikola Vucevic.

Joining Paul as reserves from the Western Conference are Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis, LA Clippers forward Paul George, Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert and guard Donovan Mitchell, Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard and New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson.

Brown, LaVine and Randle from the Eastern Conference and Williamson from the Western Conference comprise the four first-time NBA All-Star selections among reserves.

In selecting the All-Star Game reserves, each NBA head coach voted for seven players in his conference – two guards, three frontcourt players and two additional players at any position. The head coaches were not permitted to vote for players from their own team.

The All-Star Game rosters will be determined through the NBA All-Star Draft, where team captains Kevin Durant of the Nets and LeBron James of the Lakers will select from the pool of players voted as starters and reserves in each conference. TNT will air the NBA All-Star Draft on Thursday, March 4 at 8 p.m. ET.

Durant and James will make their picks without regard to a player’s conference affiliation or position. Each captain will draft 11 players to complete a 12-player roster. The NBA All-Star Draft rules include:

• The eight players who, along with the two captains, are the starters will be drafted in the first round.

• The 14 players who are the reserves will be drafted in the second round.

• As the top overall vote-getter among fans, James will have the first pick in the first round (Starters). Durant will have the first pick in the second round (Reserves).

• The captains will alternate picks in each round until all players in that round have been selected.

The 10 All-Star Game starters, unveiled last week, were selected by fans, current NBA players and a media panel. The Eastern Conference starter pool is the Nets’ Durant and Kyrie Irving, the Milwaukee Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Washington Wizards’ Bradley Beal and the 76ers’ Joel Embiid. The Western Conference starter pool is the Lakers’ James, the Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry, the Dallas Mavericks’ Luka Doncic, the Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic and the Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver will select the replacement for any player unable to participate in the All-Star Game, naming a player from the same conference as the player who is being replaced.

Philadelphia head coach Doc Rivers and his staff have earned the spot to coach Team Durant. Utah head coach Quin Snyder and his staff have earned the spot to coach Team LeBron.

February 24, 1967 Wilt Chamberlain of Philadelphia shot 18-for-18 from the field against the Baltimore Bullets, an NBA record for field goals in a game without a miss.

February 24, 1978 Kevin Porter of the New Jersey Nets handed out 29 assists in a 126-112 win over Houston, an NBA record that lasted more than a dozen years, until Orlando’s Scott Skiles collected 30 assists against Denver on December 30, 1990.

February 24, 1998 Houston's Hakeem Olajuwon became the eighth player in NBA history to play 1,000 or more games with the same team. John Stockton is the all-time leader, having played in more than 1,300 games for the Utah Jazz.