Lakers\u2019 LeBron James and Anthony Davis Will Reunite as Teammates<\/p>\n
LeBron James and Anthony Davis, former Los Angeles Lakers championship frontcourt partners, will once again share the court just two weeks after the team\u2019s high-profile Luka Doncic trade separated them.<\/p>\n
However, their reunion will be on an All-Star team, as part of the new tournament-style format for this year\u2019s weekend events.<\/p>\n
James and Davis will be joined by three more All-Stars to form the most experienced roster, including 15-time All-Star Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant, 11-time All-Star Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, and 11-time All-Star L.A. Clippers guard James Harden.<\/p>\n
This veteran group will also feature nine-time All-Star Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard, six-time All-Star Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum, and four-time All-Star Celtics forward Jaylen Brown.<\/p>\n
O’Neal\u2019s team boasts six previous All-Star Game MVPs.<\/p>\n
James and Davis spent five and a half seasons playing together, during which they won one championship, reached two Western Conference Finals, and made the playoffs in four of five completed seasons. Their Lakers had a regular season record of 245-191 (56.2 percent) under two head coaches and a playoff record of 27-21 (56.3 percent) under three.<\/p>\n
O’Neal\u2019s TNT colleague, Kenny Smith, a two-time NBA champion with the Houston Rockets in 1994 and ’95, drafted a younger-focused roster. His most experienced players are Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (23) and New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (28), both three-time All-Stars.<\/p>\n
They will be joined by two-time All-Stars Darius Garland of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Jaren Jackson Jr. of the Memphis Grizzlies, as well as four first-time All-Stars: Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams, Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley, Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham, and Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro.<\/p>\n
Barkley, a Hall of Fame power forward, went for an internationally diverse selection.<\/p>\n
He chose nine-time All-Star Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, six-time All-Star Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, six-time All-Star Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell, five-time All-Star New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns, three-time All-Star Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, three-time All-Star Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam, and two first-time All-Star centers: San Antonio Spurs\u2019 Victor Wembanyama and Houston Rockets\u2019 Alperen Sengun.<\/p>\n
Barkley\u2019s team includes two of the last three MVP winners, Jokic and Antetokounmpo. The 2023 MVP, Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid, was left off the All-Star roster this season due to health concerns and his team\u2019s struggles. Antetokounmpo (Greece), Jokic (Serbia), Gilgeous-Alexander (Canada), Siakam (Cameroon), Wembanyama (France), and Sengun (Turkey) all represent international backgrounds.<\/p>\n
After his selections, O’Neal confidently predicted victory for his veteran-heavy team.<\/p>\n
“My team\u2019s not losing to any young guys [Smith\u2019s team] or Europeans [Barkley\u2019s team],” declared the 15-time All-Star. “Bet on it. Name your price… Guaranteed.”<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Lakers\u2019 LeBron James and Anthony Davis Will Reunite as Teammates LeBron James and Anthony Davis, former Los Angeles Lakers championship frontcourt partners, will once again share the court just two weeks after the team\u2019s high-profile Luka Doncic trade separated them. However, their reunion will be on an All-Star team, as part of the new tournament-style […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":24393,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2586,246],"tags":[327,60],"class_list":["post-24391","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lakers","category-nba","tag-anthony-davis","tag-lebron-james"],"yoast_head":"\n