NBA All-Star Weekend has arrived and the festivities in Los Angeles will begin with the 2018 All-Star Celebrity Game on Friday, Feb. 16, at 4 p.m. PT. The star-studded matchup will be played at the Verizon Up Arena inside the Los Angeles Convention Center.
It will broadcast live, exclusively on ESPN and the ESPN App. Returning to host this year’s telecast is ESPN NBA commentator Cassidy Hubbarth. Joining Hubbarth will be play-by-play voice Mark Jones.
The game features an LA theme, with Team Clippers squaring off against Team Lakers. Rachel Nichols, host of ESPN’s The Jump, and fellow ESPN commentator, Katie Nolan, will serve as celebrity coaches.
Hall-of-Famer Tracy McGrady and actor Michal B. Jordan will join Nichols to coach Team Lakers. While NBA legend and ESPN analyst Paul Pierce as well as recording artist Common will join Nolan to help coach “Team Clippers”
In a unique twist, this year’s Celebrity All-Star Game will feature the first-ever 4-point line, which will be unveiled during the second half. The 4-point line, also known as “The Ridge,” was first featured in the NBA 2K18 video game and will be reminiscent of the ridges in a Ruffles potato chip.
For every shot they make from the 4-point line, Ruffles will make a $4,000 donation to the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, with a minimum of $20,000 and a maximum of $40,000 going to the charity.
A rotating list of guest analysts, which includes celebrity commentators, will join the telecast throughout the night. In-game interviews and mic’d up celebrities and coaches will also be featured.
Complete rosters included below.
Team Clippers: Anthony Anderson (ABC’s “black-ish”), Brandon Armstrong (actor, social media star), Miles Brown (ABC’s “black-ish”), Win Butler (Arcade Fire), Common (actor, recording artist), Andre De Grasse (Olympic sprinter), Stefanie Dolson (WNBA’s Chicago Sky), Jamie Foxx (actor, singer, musician), Paul Pierce (NBA legend, ESPN analyst), Dascha Polanco (actress, activist), Bubba Watson (two-time Masters champion), Quavo (singer), Jason Williams (NBA legend).
Team Lakers: Justin Bieber (singer), Sterling Brim (MTV’s “Ridiculousness”), Nick Cannon (actor, recording artist, star of MTV’s Wild’N Out), Terence Crawford (boxer), Rachel DeMita (NBA2KTV host, actress, model), Jerry Ferrara (STARZ’s “Power”), Marc Lasry (Milwaukee Bucks co-owner), Tracy McGrady (NBA legend, ESPN analyst), Caleb McLaughlin (Netflix’s “Stranger Things”), Candace Parker (WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks), Nate Robinson (NBA legend), Drew Scott (HGTV’s “Property Brothers”) and Kris Wu (actor, singer, music producer).
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