Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball and San Antonio Spurs guard Dejounte Murray have been named by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver as injury replacements for the 2022 NBA All-Star Game. Ball will replace injured Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant and Murray will replace injured Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green. In addition, Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum, who was selected as an All-Star reserve, will replace Durant as a starter.
The 71st NBA All-Star Game will be played on Sunday, Feb. 20 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland. The matchup between Team Durant and Team LeBron will air live at 8 p.m. ET on TNT and ESPN Radio in the United States and reach fans in 215 countries and territories in 59 languages.
Ball, the 2020-21 Kia NBA Rookie of the Year, has earned his first NBA All-Star selection. In his second NBA season, Ball is averaging 19.6 points, 7.5 assists, 7.1 rebounds and 1.47 steals in 47 games. He ranks 10th in the NBA in assists per game and 17th in steals per game. Ball is one of five NBA players averaging at least 19.0 points, 7.0 assists and 7.0 rebounds this season, joining 2022 All-Stars Murray, Luka Dončić of the Dallas Mavericks, James Harden of the Nets and Nikola Jokić of the Denver Nuggets. Ball, 20, was previously selected to play in the Clorox Rising Stars during NBA All-Star 2022.
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This is also the first NBA All-Star selection for Murray, who is in his fifth NBA season. He is averaging career highs of 19.6 points, 9.2 assists, 8.4 rebounds and 2.06 steals in 47 games. Murray, 25, leads the NBA in steals per game and ranks fourth in assists per game and 26th in rebounds per game. His 10 triple-doubles are the second most in the NBA and a single-season record for a Spurs player.
Durant will not play in the NBA All-Star Game because of a sprained medial collateral ligament in his left knee, which has sidelined him for the last 11 games. A 12-time NBA All-Star selection, Durant is averaging 29.3 points, 7.4 rebounds and 5.8 assists in 36 games. He was selected as a starter and team captain for the NBA All-Star Game.
Green will not play in the NBA All-Star Game because of a lower back/disc injury, which has sidelined him for the last 14 games. A four-time NBA All-Star selection, Green is averaging 7.9 points, 7.6 rebounds, 7.4 assists, 1.38 steals and 1.21 blocks in 34 games. He was selected as a reserve for the NBA All-Star Game.
When a starter is injured prior to the NBA All-Star Draft and is unable to participate in the All-Star Game, he is replaced in the starter pool for the Draft by the All-Star reserve from the same conference and of the same position group who received the highest ranking in the voting for All-Star starters. As a result, Durant will be replaced in the starter pool by Tatum.
In the NBA All-Star Draft, Tatum will be selected with the starters in the first round and Ball and Murray will be selected with the reserves in the second round. Green will be assigned to the same team that drafts Murray. TNT will air the NBA All-Star Draft on Thursday, Feb. 10 at 6:30 p.m. ET, with Durant and Team LeBron captain LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers selecting the team rosters.
Joining Ball, Durant and Tatum as NBA All-Stars from the Eastern Conference are Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks), Jimmy Butler (Miami Heat), DeMar DeRozan (Chicago Bulls), Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers), Darius Garland (Cleveland Cavaliers), James Harden (Brooklyn Nets), Zach LaVine (Chicago Bulls), Khris Middleton (Milwaukee Bucks), Fred VanVleet (Toronto Raptors) and Trae Young (Atlanta Hawks).
Joining Green, James and Murray as NBA All-Stars from the Western Conference are Devin Booker (Phoenix Suns), Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors), Luka Dončić (Dallas Mavericks), Rudy Gobert (Utah Jazz), Nikola Jokić (Denver Nuggets), Donovan Mitchell (Utah Jazz), Ja Morant (Memphis Grizzlies), Chris Paul (Phoenix Suns), Karl-Anthony Towns (Minnesota Timberwolves) and Andrew Wiggins (Golden State Warriors).
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