Damian Lillard on Sunday nailed a game-ending three-pointer from just inside half court as LeBron James improved to 4-0 as an NBA All-Star Game captain with a 170-150 win over Team Durant.
Two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Giannis Antetokounmpo captured the Kobe Bryant Award after going a perfect 16 of 16 from the field for a game-high 35 points in Atlanta, Georgia.
“It’s fun. I was happy,” Antetokounmpo said. “I just love being around great players. It makes it easier to play with them.”
Photo: Dale Zanine-USA Today
Antetokounmpo’s 16-of-16 game easily eclipsed the previous All-Star record of the Philadelphia 76ers’ Hal Greer, who went eight of eight in 1968. Antetokounmpo also made all three of his three-point attempts.
James improved to 4-0 in All-Star games he has served as a team captain. He finished with four points in just 13 minutes of playing time.
“I always try to pick the right team, and I’ve been lucky enough for four years to pick the right team,” James said. “Guys go out and compete, and play to win. I’ve been on the winning side of all four.”
James’ participation in the annual showcase was at one time in doubt. James last month criticized the NBA for holding the contest during the global COVID-19 pandemic, calling it a “slap in the face.”
NBA commissioner Adam Silver responded to the criticism from James and others at a weekend news conference, saying that the players he spoke to this week were in favor of holding the contest.
“It would have been a bigger deal not to have it,” Silver said. “I know that some players have made public comments suggesting they’d rather not be at All-Star. Many have told me directly they’re thrilled to be All-Stars. It should be judged, when people are looking back, as to what this meant to them as opposed to what some of the initial reactions were from the players.”
Antetokounmpo becomes just the second winner of the award named in honor of Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash outside Los Angeles in January last year. Kawhi Leonard was the first recipient at last year’s All-Star Game in Chicago.
“To have the trophy with the name of Kobe Bryant, it’s amazing, and I know he would be happy. Yeah, I know he’d be happy,” Antetokounmpo said. “I wanted to win the one last year really bad and I had a chance to win.”
The 70th All-Star Game had a different feel to it because there were no fans in the arena due to the pandemic, but that did not stop the players from putting on a show at the State Farm Arena, including a healthy dose of dunks, alley-oops, behind the back passes and long-range threes like the one by Lillard, who finished with 32 points.
Stephen Curry, who won the three-point shooting contest earlier in the day, hit six three-pointers in the first half en route to a 28-point night for Team LeBron.
Jaylen Brown tallied 22 points and Chris Paul dished out 16 assists. Both Curry and Lillard finished with eight baskets from beyond the arc.
Bradley Beal scored a team-high 26 points, while Kyrie Irving delivered 24 points and 12 assists for Team Durant.
In a sign that defense took the night off no player from either team grabbed more than nine rebounds.
“When you’ve got Steph, Dame, those guys shooting half-court threes, threes from the timeline, there’s not much you can do. So give credit to them,” Irving said.
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