James Harden trade adds spice to 2022 All-Star Draft
James Harden and Kevin Durant are no longer teammates in Brooklyn, and KD aimed to keep it that way for the All-Star Game.
- 2022 All-Star roster
- All-Star Draft recap
All-Star Draft results:
First Round (Starters)
1. Giannis Antetokounmpo (Team LeBron)
2. Joel Embiid (Team Durant)
3. Stephen Curry (Team LeBron)
4. Ja Morant (Team Durant)
5. DeMar DeRozan (Team LeBron)
6. Jayson Tatum (Team Durant)
7. Nikola Jokic (Team LeBron)
8-9. Trae Young and Andrew Wiggins (Team Durant)
Second Round (Reserves)
10. Devin Booker (Team Durant)
11. Luka Doncic (Team LeBron)
12. Karl-Anthony Towns (Team Durant)
13. Darius Garland (Team LeBron)
14. Zach LaVine (Team Durant)
15. Chris Paul (Team LeBron)
16. Dejounte Murray (Team Durant)
17. Jimmy Butler (Team LeBron)
18. Khris Middleton (Team Durant)
19. Donovan Mitchell (Team LeBron)
20. LaMelo Ball (Team Durant)
21. Fred VanVleet (Team LeBron)
22. Rudy Gobert (Team Durant)
23. James Harden (Team LeBron)
Team LeBron
Starters: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks; Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors; DeMar DeRozan, Chicago Bulls; LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers (captain); Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets
Reserves: Jimmy Butler, Miami Heat; Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks; Darius Garland, Cleveland Cavaliers; James Harden, Philadelphia 76ers; Donovan Mitchell, Utah Jazz; Chris Paul, Phoenix Suns; Fred VanVleet, Toronto Raptors
Team Durant
Starters: Kevin Durant, Brooklyn Nets (captain)*; Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers; Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies; Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics; Andrew Wiggins, Golden State Warriors; Trae Young, Atlanta Hawks
Reserves: LaMelo Ball, Charlotte Hornets; Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns; Rudy Gobert, Utah Jazz; Zach LaVine, Chicago Bulls; Khris Middleton, Milwaukee Bucks; Dejounte Murray, San Antonio Spurs; Karl-Anthony Towns, Minnesota Timberwolves, Draymond Green, Golden State Warriors**
* = injured, will not play
** = Draymond Green is injured and will not play but was assigned to Team Durant
ATLANTA — The drama that followed James Harden in the final moments leading up to Thursday’s trade deadline was nothing like the drama that followed him in the All-Star Draft later that very same afternoon.
There was tension and intrigue and plenty of suspense involving both events … but the draft had lots more humor and snickers.
LeBron James could barely conceal his amusement — needing a clipboard to hide his face at point — with Harden still on the board, falling and suspiciously ignored by his now-former Nets teammate Kevin Durant as the two chose sides.
#TeamDurant or #TeamLeBron?
2022 #NBAAllStar Game: 8:00pm/et February 20 on TNT & TBS pic.twitter.com/f3WgULhcf9
— #NBAAllStar (@NBAAllStar) February 11, 2022
There were three players left when LeBron, egged on by Charles Barkley and the rest of the Inside The NBA crew on the live show, selected Fred VanVleet, leaving Durant to choose between Harden and Rudy Gobert. Durant was squarely on the spot.
Kevin Durant passed on taking James Harden when down to his final pick in the 2022 All-Star Draft.
Barkley chimed in on Harden, pretending to read Durant’s mind: “You don’t want to play with me? Take your ass over there.”
LeBron doubled over.
So of course Durant chose Gobert.
“Imma need some size,” Durant explained sheepishly.
More laughter.
More Barkley: “When someone wants out, you let ‘em go. I’m with you, KD.”
Seriously, though: Durant was noticeably stoic and short-answered with regard to his opinions about Harden and the blockbuster trade between the Nets and Sixers. Brooklyn had no choice but to deal Harden, who evidently no longer wanted to be with the Nets, leaving without playing a full season for the club. The Nets, built to win a title now, received Ben Simmons and other pieces in return but there’s no indication whether Simmons will suit up this season.
“I’m excited,” said Durant, who did not look excited.
Then he cryptically added this: “Everybody got what they wanted.”
And this: “Happy we got guys who want to be a part of this.”
Well then: Judging by Durant’s refusal to “draft” Harden — they were teammates once in Oklahoma City and by all accounts good friends — or express sadness with the trade, it left the impression that Durant wanted to cut ties with the former MVP in every way possible.
LeBron James and Kevin Durant pick their 2022 All-Star game starters.
In a coincidental twist, it was Harden who ran interference between Durant and Russell Westbrook five years ago at All-Star Weekend. Durant and Westbrook weren’t speaking and had bad blood following Durant’s departure from Oklahoma City to the Warriors, yet found themselves once again teammates, this time for the All-Star Game.
Any drama between the two ex-teammates won’t spill over into All-Star Sunday, though. Durant won’t compete against Harden in Cleveland at this All-Star Game; Durant’s injured and won’t play.
Meanwhile: LeBron is unbeaten at 4-0 in All-Star play as a captain, and once again stockpiled his team impressively. Counting himself, there’s a combined 10 MVPs in his rotation, and unlike Durant, LeBron will actually start and play in the game.
He chose Giannis Antetokounmpo with the first pick, calling Giannis “the hardest-playing player in All-Star history.” LeBron filled out his starting five with Steph Curry, DeMar DeRozan and reigning MVP Nikola Jokic.
“We got some size, some shooting, some slashers, some passers,” LeBron said.
James Harden plummets down the board as LeBron and Kevin Durant pick their reserves.
When LeBron also chose 36-year-old Chris Paul, Barkley couldn’t resist taking a dig at LeBron and the struggling Lakers: “That will help with diversity. He got someone (else) old on his team now.”
Durant’s team is much lighter in the MVP count — actually, none have won the award — but Durant seemed pleased with the results. He chose Joel Embiid (a leading MVP candidate this season) with his first pick and added Ja Morant, Jayson Tatum, Trae Young and Andrew Wiggins to the starting lineup.
Other than Jokic, LeBron doesn’t have a natural center on his team. He’s loaded with playmakers, with himself, Luka Doncic, Chris Paul, Darius Garland, Curry, VanVleet and Harden. Most of the size is with Team Durant, with Embiid, Karl-Anthony Towns and Gobert.
This was the second time in three All-Star drafts that Harden was snubbed. In 2020, Giannis was a team captain and he took Kemba Walker instead of Harden because Giannis wanted someone “that’s going to pass it.”
That decision was done with a bit of playfulness.
This one?
The look on Durant’s stone face said it all.
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Shaun Powell has covered the NBA for more than 25 years. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on Twitter.
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