Warriors, Wolves, Wizards each get 2 NBA All-Star reserves
Washington Wizards guard John Wall (2) is fouled taking a shot by Dallas Mavericks’ Yogi Ferrell (11) in the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 22, 2018, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
NEW YORK — Stephen Curry will be able to stock his All-Star roster with plenty of Golden State teammates.
Klay Thompson and Draymond Green were chosen as reserves Tuesday, giving the defending NBA champions a record-tying four All-Stars for the second straight year.
The Minnesota Timberwolves and Washington Wizards also had two reserves selected, and they will go into the pool of players that Curry and fellow captain LeBron James can draft to comprise the teams for the Feb. 18 game in Los Angeles. Their rosters will be unveiled Thursday, though the selection process won’t be televised.
Minnesota’s Jimmy Butler and Karl-Anthony Towns were chosen from the Western Conference, along with Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook, San Antonio’s LaMarcus Aldridge and Portland’s Damian Lillard.
Besides Washington’s John Wall and Bradley Beal, the rest of the Eastern Conference reserves were Boston’s Al Horford, Cleveland’s Kevin Love, New York’s Kristaps Porzingis, Toronto’s Kyle Lowry and Indiana’s Victor Oladipo.
The starters were announced last week. Curry and the Warriors’ Kevin Durant joined Houston’s James Harden and New Orleans’ Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins from the West, while the East players besides James were Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, Boston’s Kyrie Irving, Toronto’s DeMar DeRozan and Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid.
James and Curry earned the captain spots by being the leading vote-getters in fan balloting in each conference. They will not have to stick to conference affiliation when drafting their teams.
James will have the first pick after receiving the most total votes. After the starters are chosen, Curry will have the first pick among the reserves.
Beal, Oladipo, Porzingis and Towns were all first-time selections. Every other reserve will be making at least his third All-Star appearance.
The reserves were voted upon by the head coaches in each conference, who had to select two guards, three frontcourt players and two other players regardless of position. They were prohibited for voting for their own players.
Players having strong seasons who didn’t make the cut included Detroit’s Andre Drummond, the NBA’s leading rebounder, Clippers guard Lou Williams, Houston’s Chris Paul and Oklahoma City’s Paul George.
