2019 NBA All-Star Game: Kyrie Irving Calls Himself, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard And James Harden ‘Great Five’

Dan Duangdao
2 Min Read
Joe Murphy-NBAE via Getty Images

LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo, the leading vote-getters in the Western and Eastern Conference, selected their players in the 2019 NBA All-Star Game Draft.

Televised for the very first time on TNT’s “Inside the NBA,” James selected Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, Kawhi Leonard and James Harden for his starting lineup.

As the Los Angeles Lakers were unable to trade for Anthony Davis and will still have $38 million in salary cap space for 2019 free agency, all of the attention was on James drafting three out of four starters who are set to become unrestricted free agents this summer.

Following the Boston Celtics’ 129-128 loss to the Lakers, Irving was impressed with James’ All-Star Draft, especially the starting lineup, via NBA on ESPN:

“Oh wow. That’s a great five. I’m excited just to be an All-Star, getting picked by the fans, as well as the media. I’m truly grateful. It gives us another chance to go out there and play together. Myself, Bron, KD, Kawhi and James, it’s a pretty exciting time.”

Earlier this season, Irving apologized to James for how he acted during their three seasons with the Cleveland Cavaliers. While James initially did not comment about the conversation, he believes they are in a ‘good place’ now in their relationship.

Since then, there have been multiple reports about James and Irving possibly reuniting in Los Angeles. Particularly with Irving having backed off from his earlier commitment to the Celtics, anything is possible leading up to July 1.

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Dan Duangdao was the managing editor at Lakers Nation (2013-16, 2018-20). He is currently the founder at LA Sports Media, Lake Show, Raiders Nation, Rams Nation, Kings Nation, Galaxy Nation, and MMA Rumors. Born and raised in Southern California and a lifelong Los Angeles sports and mixed martial arts fan, his first NBA game was Kobe Bryant and the Lakers against the Golden State Warriors with Michael Jordan in attendance during the 1998-99 NBA season. He was previously a contributor at HOOPSWORLD (now Basketball Insiders) and an NBA editor at ClutchPoints. Follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram: @DanDuangdao.
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