Guide for beginners on NBA All-Star Game

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — Here’s what you need to know about the NBA All-Star Weekend from February 17th-19th.

The NBA All-Star Game is a basketball exhibition game, which means it has no effect on players’ statistics or teams’ records. The teams play for a charity of their choice located in Utah, to help the All-Star Game remain competitive. Every quarter, the teams compete for the highest number of points in that quarter, which plays into how much money is given to their chosen charity.

Overall a total of 750,000 will be contributed to the two charities through the NBA All-Star Game and the NBA All-Star Practice. Team Lebron (James) will play for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Utah, and Team Giannis (Antetokounmpo) will play for Raise the Future.

The game has two teams, Team LeBron, and Team Giannis, as the two players who received the most fan votes in their respective conferences. The rosters for the two teams are created through a combination of fans, players, coaches, and media voting. The teams include five starters and seven backups, and for the first time in NBA All-Star History, the draft will take place right before the game. This is when the two team captains, James and Antetokounmpo, will draft their rosters from the list of starters and reserves.

The two coaches are Joe Mazzula of the Boston Celtics of the Eastern Conference, and Mike Malone of the Denver Nuggets of the Western Conference.

This is the second time in All-Star Game history that the game is being held in Utah. The first time was in 1993, and the game was held at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, now known as Vivint Arena. Utah Jazz recently announced it would change the building’s name back to Delta Center this summer for the start of its 50th anniversary season.

In 1993, Karl Malone and John Stockton from the Jazz were named co-MVPs of the game playing on their home court. This year Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen is the team’s lone representative playing on his home court. Markkanen joined the Utah Jazz prior to this season and has played in the NBA since 2017. This is his first time being selected as an All-Star in his career, averaging 25 points and nine rebounds per game.

Former Weber State star Damian Lillard will play in his seventh All-Star Game for the Portland Trail Blazers.

The NBA All-Star Game is played with normal NBA rules, with the exception of the fourth quarter. The final quarter uses Elam Ending rules. This means that the game clock is turned off, and 24 points will be added to the leading team’s score. Whichever team reaches that mark first, wins the game. The 24 points is in honor of Kobe Bryant, #24 for the Los Angeles Lakers, who was killed in a helicopter crash shortly before the game.

Here are the players selected for the All-Star Game this year.