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Team Giannis pulled off a dominant 184-175 win over Team LeBron in the 2023 NBA All-Star Game. Jayson Tatum grabbed the MVP award.
The Boston Celtics forward had the hot hand early on, scoring 13 first-quarter points. He ended with 55, an All-Star Game record. Anthony Davis set the previous record back in 2017 when he had 52 points.
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Antetokounmpo scored the first basket, committed a foul and went to the bench early to rest an injured left wrist. The score was 99-92 at halftime, favoring Team Giannis.
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The biggest news coming out of the halftime break was that LeBron James was not returning to play. He apparently injured his hand, prompting an early exit, much to the dismay of thousands of his fans.
Since the new format was introduced, James was 5-0. He was the captain of all five of the teams and had Antetokounmpo as part of his team twice. This was his first loss as the leader of his All-Star crew.
James picked Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving and Joel Embiid to play with in the starting five. Antetokounmpo drafted Lauri Markkanen, Donovan Mitchell, Ja Morant and Jayson Tatum.
The LA Lakers superstar went with size, while the Milwaukee Bucks player opted for speed in their respective first units.
"King James" had Anthony Edwards, Jaylen Brown, Paul George, Tyrese Haliburton, Julius Randle, De'Aaron Fox, and Jaren Jackson Jr. as his reserves. Edwards idolizes James, so to be picked by him in his first NBA All-Star Game had to mean a great deal.
"The Greek Freak" picked Damian Lillard, Jrue Holiday, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, DeMar DeRozan, Pascal Siakam, Bam Adebayo, and Domantas Sabonis. Antetokounmpo surprised the entire basketball world when he picked Lillard as his first reserve over teammate Holiday.
Backing up Jayson Tatum's monster night were Donovan Mitchell and Damian Lillard with 40 and 26 points, respectively. Team LeBron was led by Tatum's co-star from the Boston Celtics, Jaylen Brown, who had 35 points.
Joel Embiid and Kyrie Irving each added 32 in a losing cause.
The 2023 NBA All-Star Game lived up to the hype
"King James" was honored at half-time as the all-time scoring leader. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone joined him on stage as the NBA celebrated the top scorers in league history.
Even without some of the NBA's most popular stars such as Steph Curry and Zion Williamson, tonight's event didn't disappoint.
Salt Lake City hosted its first All-Star game in 30 years. Three decades ago, the legendary duo of Karl Malone and John Stockton won co-MVP honors. Both were honored during the weekend and were on hand to watch the festivities.
The Utah Jazz also had a representative in the All-Star game in the shape of debutant Lauri Markkanen. He started for Team Giannis as Zion Williamson's replacement and scored 13 points, which was highlighted by a variety of dunks.
You might also like to read: 2023 NBA All-Star Game style watch day 3: Who had the best sneakers, drip, and outfits? Ja Morant, Jayson Tatum, and more
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