NEW YORK — Lakers star LeBron James made the NBA All-Star team for a record 22nd time Sunday after being selected as a Western Conference reserve by NBA coaches.
James had been selected as an All-Star starter 21 consecutive times, an NBA record, but fans didn’t choose him this season. The 41-year-old James is just the second player to earn multiple All-Star selections after the age of 40, joining Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards, Denver’s Jamal Murray, Oklahoma City’s Chet Holmgren, Houston’s Kevin Durant, Phoenix’s Devin Booker and Portland’s Deni Avdija also were named Western Conference reserves.
The Eastern Conference reserves are Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell, Atlanta’s Jalen Johnson, New York’s Karl-Anthony Towns, Indiana’s Pascal Siakam, Miami’s Norman Powell, Toronto’s Scottie Barnes and Detroit’s Jalen Duren.
James is averaging 21.9 points, 5.8 rebounds and 6.6 assists over 33.1 minutes per game. He’s shooting 50.2% from the field and 34.9% from three-point range through 30 games.
James missed the first 14 games of the season with sciatica and started slow when he returned, but he has been playing at a higher level recently.
In January, James had a total of 109 fourth-quarter points, tied for the most in the NBA during the month with Kevin Durant. James has helped the Lakers post a league-best 14-2 record in clutch games.
James will join Lakers teammate Luka Doncic, who had the most All-Star votes, in the All-Star game at the Clippers’ home arena, the Intuit Dome, on Feb. 15.
The new All-Star format will be a three-team tournament that will feature two U.S. teams and one world team from 24 players selected.
The U.S. will have 16 players and the world will have eight. Doncic, who is from Slovenia, will play for the world team.
The teams then play a round-robin of 12-minute games, with the top two teams advancing to the final 12-minute championship.
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