2017 NBA All-Star Reserves Announced

NEW YORK, Jan. 26, 2017 – Two-time reigning Kia NBA All-Star MVP Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder and first-time All-Stars Gordon Hayward of the Utah Jazz, DeAndre Jordan of the LA Clippers and Kemba Walker of the Charlotte Hornets lead the list of 14 players selected by the NBA’s head coaches as reserves for the 2017 NBA All-Star Game in New Orleans.

Joining Westbrook, Hayward and Jordan as Western Conference reserves are DeMarcus Cousins of the Sacramento Kings, Marc Gasol of the Memphis Grizzlies and Draymond Green and Klay Thompson of the Golden State Warriors.  With Green and Thompson earning spots alongside West starters Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant, the NBA-leading Warriors (39-7) have matched a league record with four All-Star selections.

In addition to Walker, the East reserves are Paul George of the Indiana Pacers, Kevin Love of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Kyle Lowry of the Toronto Raptors, Paul Millsap of the Atlanta Hawks, Isaiah Thomas of the Boston Celtics and John Wall of the Washington Wizards.  Love joins East starters Kyrie Irving and LeBron James to give the East-leading Cavaliers (30-14) three All-Stars, tying a franchise record last reached in the 1992-93 season.

The 66^th NBA All-Star Game, set for Sunday, Feb. 19 at 8 p.m. ET at Smoothie King Center, will be televised by TNT and will also be available on the Watch TNT App and on TNT Overtime.  In addition, the game will be broadcast on ESPN Radio, with audio also available on the ESPN app.  The midseason classic will reach fans in more than 200 countries and territories in more than 40 languages.

Westbrook, who led the West to victories in the 2015 and 2016 All-Star Games, is the only player in league history to win the Kia NBA All-Star MVP Award outright in back-to-back years.  Now a six-time All-Star selection, Westbrook (30.7 ppg, 10.7 rpg, 10.4 apg) is on pace to join Oscar Robertson of the 1961-62 Cincinnati Royals as the only players to average a triple-double for an entire season.

2017 NBA All-Star Reserves Announced

Eastern Conference All-Star Reserves

• Paul George, Pacers: George, who is averaging 22.2 points and 6.0 rebounds this season, scored 41 points and sank a record nine three-pointers in the 2016 All-Star Game.
• Kevin Love, Cavaliers: Love (20.5 ppg, 11.0 rpg), who earned his fourth All-Star selection, is the only player in the East averaging at least 20.0 points and 10.0 rebounds.
• Kyle Lowry, Raptors: An All-Star for the third year in a row, Lowry is averaging a career-best 22.4 points and ranks fourth in the NBA in three-pointers made with 143.
• Paul Millsap, Hawks: Millsap (18.0 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 3.8 apg) is making his fourth consecutive trip to the All-Star Game since joining Atlanta in 2013.
• Isaiah Thomas, Celtics: The 60^th and final pick of NBA Draft 2011 presented by State Farm ranks second in the NBA in scoring with a career-high 29.1 points, helping him secure his second All-Star berth in a row.
• Kemba Walker, Hornets: Walker, who is averaging a career-high 23.0 points, becomes Charlotte’s first All-Star selection since Gerald Wallace in the 2009-10 season.
• John Wall, Wizards: An All-Star for the fourth straight year, the Kia NBA Eastern Conference Player of the Month for December is averaging a career-high 23.1 points and ranks third in NBA in assists (10.1 apg) and second in steals (2.23 spg).

Western Conference All-Star Reserves

• DeMarcus Cousins, Kings: The NBA’s fifth-leading scorer (28.0 ppg) has been named an All-Star for the third consecutive season.
• Marc Gasol, Grizzlies: Now a three-time All-Star, the Spanish center is averaging career highs of 20.6 points and 4.2 assists to go with 64 three-pointers made; he entered the season with 12 threes made in his first eight seasons combined.
• Draymond Green, Warriors: An All-Star for the second straight season, Green ranks 19^th in the NBA in rebounding (8.5 rpg), eighth in assists (7.5 apg) and third in steals (1.93 spg) for a team that leads the league in offensive and defensive rating.
• Gordon Hayward, Jazz: Averaging career highs of 21.8 points and 5.7 rebounds, Hayward is Utah’s first All-Star selection since Deron Williams in the 2010-11 season.
• DeAndre Jordan, Clippers: A first-time All-Star in his ninth season, Jordan leads the NBA in rebounding (14.0 rpg) and field goal percentage (69.0).
• Klay Thompson, Warriors: Named to his third straight All-Star Game, Thompson owns the NBA’s highest-scoring game of the season (60 points vs. Indiana on Dec. 5) and leads the league in points on catch-and-shoot plays (10.6 ppg) for the third time in four years.
• Russell Westbrook, Thunder: The NBA scoring leader has posted 23 triple-doubles in 2016-17, putting him on pace to equal Robertson’s single-season record of 41 in 1961-62.

The 14 reserves were chosen by the 30 NBA head coaches, who were asked to vote for seven players in their respective conferences – two guards, three frontcourt players and two additional players at either position group.  They were not permitted to vote for players from their own team.

Source: NBA Press Release