Team Giannis defeats Team LeBron in the NBA All-Star Game as Celtics’ Jayson Tatum sets new game record
By Jacob Lev, CNN
Los Angeles Lakers icon LeBron James’ perfect 5-0 record as an NBA All-Star Game captain has come to an end after his team was defeated 184-175 by Team Giannis in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Sunday night.
Upon receiving the winning trophy, All-Star captain and Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo jokingly said “Winner, winner chicken dinner.”
The 72nd All-Star Game concluded a weekend-long showcase of the league’s most talented players, held in Utah for the first time in 30 years.
Both teams played to raise nearly $1 million for their selected charities — Big Brothers Big Sisters of Utah for Team LeBron and Raise the Future for Team Giannis.
Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum finished the game with a game-high 55 points, setting a new All-Star Game record. Tatum was named the MVP of the game.
“It means the world,” Tatum said when asked about the significance of beating the record.
“You think of all the legends and great players to play in this game and in all honesty, records are meant to be broken,” Tatum said on the TNT broadcast after the game. “So, I’ll hold it for as long as I can but I’m certain someone will come along in a couple of years and try to break it.”
During halftime, the league honored James, who broke the NBA scoring record earlier this month. He was joined by Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Utah Jazz legend Karl Malone, who hold the second and third spots on the NBA all-time scoring list, respectively.
James was ruled out of the game after suffering a hand injury, after apparently hitting his hand on the rim in the first half, according to the TNT broadcast. He finished the night with 13 points and four assists.
“I’ll be fine. I don’t think it’s too much to worry about, but for precautionary reasons I had to take the rest of the night off,” James said following the game.
The weekend’s contests began Friday with an All-Star Celebrity game featuring rappers 21 Savage and Cordae, actor Simu Liu, tennis star Frances Tiafoe, NFL player DK Metcalf and singers Nicky Jam, Janelle Monáe and Ozuna.
The celebrity players were coached by Ryan Smith, Utah Jazz governor and honorary captain, and three-time NBA champion Dwyane Wade.
Also on Friday, four teams competed in the Rising Stars showdowns, featuring the best rookie and sophomore talents in the league.
Saturday’s lineup included a Skills Challenge, Three-point Contest and Dunk Contest.
Mac McClung was crowned NBA Slam Dunk champion, scoring a perfect 50 for three of his four dunks, and capping a week in which he signed a two-way contract with the Philadelphia 76ers.
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CNN’s Matias Grez contributed to this report.
