James Harden of Brooklyn Nets guard and Chris Paul from the Phoenix Suns guard lead the list of 14 players selected by the NBA’s head coaches as reserves for the 2021 NBA All-Star Game.
Harden has been named an All-Star for the ninth straight year and Paul has earned his 11th All-Star selection.
The 70th NBA All-Star Game will be played Sunday, March 7 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta and televised by TNT as part of NBA All-Star 2021, which will take place on one night.
In addition to Harden, the NBA All-Star Game reserves selected from the Eastern Conference are Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown and forward Jayson Tatum, Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine, New York Knicks forward Julius Randle, Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons and Orlando Magic center Nikola Vučević.
Joining Paul as reserves from the Western Conference are Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis, LA Clippers forward Paul George, Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert and guard Donovan Mitchell, Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard and New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson.
Brown, LaVine and Randle from the Eastern Conference and Williamson from the Western Conference comprise the four first-time NBA All-Star selections among reserves.
In selecting the All-Star Game reserves, each NBA head coach voted for seven players in his conference – two guards, three frontcourt players and two additional players at any position. The head coaches were not permitted to vote for players from their own team.
The All-Star Game rosters will be determined through the NBA All-Star Draft, where team captains Kevin Durant of the Nets and LeBron James of the Lakers will select from the pool of players voted as starters and reserves in each conference. TNT will air the NBA All-Star Draft on Thursday, March 4 at 8 p.m. ET.
Durant and James will make their picks without regard to a player’s conference affiliation or position. Each captain will draft 11 players to complete a 12-player roster. The NBA All-Star Draft rules include:
The eight players who, along with the two captains, are the starters will be drafted in the first round.
The 14 players who are the reserves will be drafted in the second round.
As the top overall vote-getter among fans, James will have the first pick in the first round (Starters). Durant will have the first pick in the second round (Reserves).
The captains will alternate picks in each round until all players in that round have been selected. The 10 All-Star Game starters, unveiled last week, were selected by fans, current NBA players and a media panel.