Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, Zion Injury Replacements Revealed for NBA All-Star Game
Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid, Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant and Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen were named injury-replacement starters on Friday for next weekend's NBA All-Star Game in Salt Lake City.
Three new All-Star starters were needed since Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (leg), New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson (hamstring) and Brooklyn Nets turned Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant (knee) are out because of injuries.
The NBA also named three new All-Star selections in Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards, Sacramento Kings guard De'Aaron Fox and Toronto Raptors forward Pascal Siakam.
There was perhaps no more controversial snub for the NBA All-Star Game than Embiid being relegated to the bench rather than a starting role.
Embiid was in a difficult position as an Eastern Conference frontcourt player, as Durant, Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo and Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum all secured starting spots over him.
The 7-footer is an All-Star for a sixth consecutive season and is coming off a 2021-22 campaign that saw him finish second in the NBA MVP voting. He has perhaps been even better this season.
After winning the scoring title with an average of 30.6 points per game last season, Embiid is averaging a career-high 33.3 points per game in 2022-23 to go along with 10.1 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.6 blocks, 1.2 three-pointers made and 1.1 steals.
That would easily be enough to earn an All-Star starting nod most years, but Durant, Giannis and Tatum are studs in their own right, so someone had to be on the outside looking in.
Durant has been out for the past month with a knee injury, which opened the door for Embiid, and KD is now no longer in the Eastern Conference, either, after getting moved to the Suns in a blockbuster trade Thursday.
Morant was another controversial omission from the starting lineup, since the Grizzlies have been one of the NBA's best teams this season.
With 27.4 points per game, he is matching the career high in scoring he set last season, plus he is averaging career highs in assists (8.3), rebounds (5.8) and three-pointers made (1.7).
Entering the 2022-23 season, few could have envisioned Markkanen coming anywhere close to the All-Star Game, but now he is an All-Star starter in his home NBA city.
Markkanen was shipped to Utah during the offseason as part of the trade that sent fellow All-Star starter Donovan Mitchell to the Cleveland Cavaliers, and the Finnish forward has blossomed into the player the Chicago Bulls hoped he would be when they selected him seventh overall in the 2017 NBA draft.
The 25-year-old has set career marks in essentially every major category this season, including points per game (24.7), rebounds (8.6), three-pointers made (3.1) and assists (1.7). He is also shooting a career-best 51.8 percent from the field and 42.2 percent from beyond the arc.
Now, Markkanen will be one of 10 starters when the 2023 NBA All-Star Game tips off at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City on Feb. 19.
