MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo has been named a starter for the 2021 NBA All-Star Game, the NBA announced Thursday.
This is the fifth straight season that Antetokounmpo has been selected as an All-Star Game starter.
The Bucks released the following statement regarding the feat:
Fans, media and players once again determined the starters for the All-Star Game, which will take place on Sunday, March 7 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, with fans accounting for 50% of the vote while the media and players accounted for 25% each. Among Eastern Conference frontcourt players, Antetokounmpo received the second-most fan votes, the second-most player votes and the most media votes.
In his eighth NBA season, Antetokounmpo, the league’s two-time reigning Most Valuable Player and the 2019-20 Defensive Player of the Year, is averaging 28.2 points (7th in the NBA), 11.4 rebounds (7th in the NBA), 5.8 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.3 blocks per game while shooting 56.3% from the field. He’s one of only two players in the league this season averaging 25.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game while his 19 doubles-doubles are tied for the fifth-most and his four triple-doubles rank as the fifth-most in the NBA.
Joining Antetokounmpo as starters for the 70th NBA All-Star Game are Bradley Beal (Washington Wizards), Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors), Luka Dončić (Dallas Mavericks), Kevin Durant (Brooklyn Nets), Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers), Kyrie Irving (Brooklyn Nets), LeBron James (LA Lakers), Kawhi Leonard (LA Clippers) and Nikola Jokić (Denver Nuggets).
The rosters for the NBA All-Star Game will be determined through the NBA All-Star Draft, where the two team captains, Durant and James, will select from the pool of players voted as starters and reserves in each conference and make their picks without regard to conference affiliation. The reserves for the 2021 NBA All-Star Game, selected by the NBA head coaches, will be announced on Tuesday, Feb. 23.
