Last week, we learned the 10 players who will start the 2020 NBA All-Star Game. The players will be split between two teams, captained by LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo, and we’ll see how the players get split up next week.
But before we get to the All-Star draft, there are still 14 more players who need to make the game as reserves. Those are slated to be announced on Thursday evening by the Inside the NBA crew, and thanks to Shams Charania of The Athletic, we learned the players who will come off the bench in Chicago a bit earlier than anticipated.
The Eastern Conference includes four guys who have made it to the All-Star Game in years past making it this time around: Jimmy Butler, Kyle Lowry, Khris Middleton, and Ben Simmons. They’ll be joined by a trio of first-time selections inBam Adebayo, Jayson Tatum, and Domantas Sabonis. From the Western Conference, two members of the Utah Jazz earned their first selections in Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell, while Brandon Ingram also earned the distinction for the first time. The All-Star veterans joining them will be Nikola Jokic, Damian Lillard, Chris Paul, and Russell Westbrook.
There are a few noteworthy snubs — Bradley Beal and Devin Booker are both worth candidates to suit up in the Windy City — and we’ll have to see if Adam Silver makes a commissioner’s pick this year to honor Vince Carter, who is retiring at the end of this season. All of these players are worthy selections, though, and Antetokounmpo and James will have some tough choices ahead of them when they sit down and select their rosters.
