NBA All-Star Game 2017: TV Schedule, Live Stream, Rosters and Prediction

The 66th NBA All-Star Game featuring stars and drama will put a cap on a memorable weekend in New Orleans, Louisiana. Typically, the stars play nice in the sandbox until the fourth quarter when one player rises above the rest to propel his conference to victory.

In this year’s event, we’ll see four new All-Stars take the court, two on each team. Many describe New York Knicks forward Kristaps Porzingis as a unicorn, but the Milwaukee Bucks have of their own in Giannis Antetokounmpo. He’s posting career-high numbers in points, rebounds, steals, blocks and shooting percentage for the season.

Furthermore, the first-time All-Star can play all five positions. As a 22-year-old newcomer in a star-dominated event, we’ll see where he fits among the NBA’s best.

For the Western Conference, we could see Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan take Lob City to New Orleans. In his first All-Star appearance, his teammates will likely look to put him in position to embarrass the opposition at the rim.

The All-Star Game doesn’t mean everything to everyone, especially if it’s your 10th selection, which ranks second-most behind LeBron James’ 13 appearances. According to NBC Sports writer Dan Feldman, Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony didn’t jump for joy when hearing about his invite to replace Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love. 

"It was a downer,” Anthony said in reference to the late invite. “I had to cancel my trip. No refunds.”

Apparently, Anthony had better plans in mind, but he insists that he’s not bummed about rearranging his itinerary. Cut the Knicks’ star some slack. It’s been a rough year playing for a squad that’s performing well short of expectations and a team president that seems ready to part ways for a rebuild.

Where can you catch the All-Stars on television or on a mobile device? Who wins the battle between East and West?

Event	Date	Time	TV	Live Stream
NBA All-Star Game	Sunday, Feb. 19	8 p.m. ET	TNT	Watch TNT

Starters	Player	Team	All-Star Appearances
FC	Giannis Antetokounmpo	Milwaukee Bucks	1
FC	Jimmy Butler	Chicago Bulls	3
FC	LeBron James	Cleveland Cavaliers	13
BC	DeMar DeRozan	Toronto Raptors	3
BC	Kyrie Irving	Cleveland Cavaliers	4
Reserves	Player	Team	All-Star Appearances
FC	Paul George	Indiana Pacers	4
FC	Carmelo Anthony	New York Knicks	10
BC	Kyle Lowry	Toronto Raptors	3
FC	Paul Millsap	Atlanta Hawks	4
BC	Isaiah Thomas	Boston Celtics	2
BC	Kemba Walker	Charlotte Hornets	1
BC	John Wall	Washington Wizards	4

Starters	Player	Team	All-Star Appearances
FC	Anthony Davis	New Orleans Pelicans	4
FC	Kevin Durant	Golden State Warriors	8
FC	Kawhi Leonard	San Antonio Spurs	2
BC	Stephen Curry	Golden State Warriors	4
BC	James Harden	Houston Rockets	5
Reserves	Player	Team	All-Star Appearances
FC	DeMarcus Cousins	Sacramento Kings	3
FC	Marc Gasol	Memphis Grizzlies	3
FC	Draymond Green	Golden State Warriors	2
BC	Gordon Hayward	Utah Jazz	1
FC	DeAndre Jordan	Los Angeles Clippers	1
BC	Klay Thompson	Golden State Warriors	3
BC	Russell Westbrook	Oklahoma City Thunder	6

All-Star Buzz and Predictions 

Leading up to the event, Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook used his love for fashion as a side-stepper for questions pertaining to the Golden State Warriors and Kevin Durant. At this point, his responses come off as deliberate with the intention of throwing anther log on the fire that burns between ex-teammates:

On the other side, the Eastern Conference All-Stars gregariously gathered together during a shootaround. Yes, we’re talking about practice.

Due to Westbrook's aggressive demeanor and his disdain for Durant and the Warriors, he’ll likely shift into attack mode to show up his peers. OddsShark lists the Thunder’s centerpiece as the favorite to win MVP honors on Sunday:

Player	Odds
Russell Westbrook (West)	+350
Stepen Curry (West)	+600
Anthony Davis (West)	+650
James Harden (West)	+700
Kevin Durant (West)	+700
LeBron James (East)	+700
Kyrie Irving (East)	+750
Giannis Antetokounmpo (East)	+1100
Kawhi Leonard (West)	+1500
Isaiah Thomas (East)	+1500

Anthony’s reaction to joining the Eastern Conference roster as a replacement doesn’t indicate any added motivation to put on a show. However, he’s typically played well in this event:

As mentioned, the Knicks star has gone through some ups and downs throughout the season. His teammates will either look to lift his spirits by feeding him the basketball or allow him to coast in the background with an occasional long-distance shot. 

Western Conference head coach Steve Kerr won’t likely allow his four All-Stars to go full throttle with the rest of the season in mind. Houston Rockets' do-it-all star James Harden could steal the show with his ability to score and dish out assists on a consistent basis. Playing defense comes as a rarity in this game, so he won’t be pressed to lock down his opponent.

Keep an eye on the smallest All-Star among the participants. Similar to Westbrook, Boston Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas pushes himself to the max whenever he's on the court. He’s also hell-bent on shedding the "best little guy" label as an elite player without being placed in a separate category due to his height.

We’ll see lobs, long three-pointers and fancy dribbles like any other All-Star Game, but who takes the win and the hardware?

Predictions: West 164, East 157; Russell Westbrook wins MVP