PHILADELPHIA - Imagine Joel Embiid deploys his facilitating prowess to feed outlet passes to arguably the most dangerous 3-point shooter in NBA history, or to set up the league’s leading scorer.
Perhaps instead the 76ers’ dynamic big man runs a 4-5 pick-and-roll with another ridiculously freakish athlete, or uses his size to open up space for a lethal three-level scorer.
Lucky for you, the wait to see all these tantalizing possibilities won’t be long.
Thursday, rosters for the 2018 All-Star Game were finalized, and for the first time in the event’s 67-year history, the top fan vote-getter from each conference - LeBron James from the East, and Steph Curry from the West - served as captains.
It was Curry, the two-time champion, two-time MVP, and top 3-point producer the last five years, who chose Embiid for his squad. Based on fan voting returns, Embiid will join Golden State’s Curry in the Team Stephen starting line-up, along with Houston’s James Harden, Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Toronto’s DeMar DeRozan.
Between Embiid and Curry, there's a modest personal history that the two share, having taken part in a dinner together last season while the Warriors were in Philadelphia.
Curry rounded out his crew with the following reserves: Minnesota’s Jimmy Butler, Golden State’s Draymond Green, Boston’s Al Horford, Portland’s Damian Lillard, Toronto’s Kyle Lowry, Golden State’s Klay Thompson, and Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns.
James had the chance to pick first in Thursday’s All-Star draft, which was completed earlier in the day over a conference call. Headlining the King’s group are starters New Orleans’ DeMarcus Cousins, New Orleans’ Anthony Davis, Golden State’s Kevin Durant, and James’ old title-winning teammate from Cleveland, Kyrie Irving, who now plays for Boston.
In another All-Star-related development Thursday, Nike released a sneak peak of the jerseys players will wear in the game, which is set for Sunday, February 18th at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles.
Embiid has also been nominated to participate in this year's Mtn Dew KickStart Rising Stars Challenge, along with Sixers teammates Dario Saric and Ben Simmons. The exhibition will also be played in L.A., the Friday before the All-Star Game itself.