The 67th edition of the NBA All-Star Game took place at Staples Center on Sunday, marking the league-record sixth time the city of Los Angeles played host to the weekend-long festivities.
But for the first time since its inception, the NBA shifted away from its traditional Eastern Conference versus Western Conference format. Instead, each roster was determined via draft by two captains in Stephen Curry and LeBron James.
To no surprise, it was a highly-entertaining battle between Team LeBron and Team Stephen, featuring many lead changes along the way. James’ go-ahead layup with 34.5 seconds to play was key to his team completing the fourth-quarter comeback.
All-in-all, James scored a game-high 29 points and took home his third All-Star Game MVP for his efforts on both sides of the ball.
After the final buzzer, the four-time MVP offered high praise to the city of Los Angeles, deeming it’s the ideal destination to host All-Star Weekend. “I think L.A. is a perfect place to host All-Star Weekend,” James said. “It’s one of the few cities that we have in our league that can accommodate all of this.
“And when I mean all of this, you have over 200-plus countries that’s covering the game. You’ve got so many people from all over the world coming to watch our game and just be a part of All-Star Weekend.
“And we know the traffic. We understand that. But traffic is traffic but L.A. can accommodate that. It’s built for stars. It’s built for entertainment. It’s built for cameras and bright lights, and it’s a great place for it. I hope everybody had a great weekend. I know I did. I know my family did. So it was a great weekend.”
James also expressed his affinity for the city prior to tipoff. “Los Angeles is a great city, man,” he told the crowd.
James isn’t the only superstar who enjoyed the weekend, as Palmdale, Calif., native Paul George again restated how much he enjoys playing in Los Angeles.
The Lakers are expected to target both players in free agency this summer, and their latest comments will only add to the speculation that both will seriously entertain teaming up together in a city they clearly enjoy.
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