Anthony Davis will not only take part in this year’s NBA All-Star Game, but he’ll be one of the five starters for the West.
On Thursday, the East and West starters were announced, and they included the Pelicans forward. Though there were plenty of elite big men worthy of a starting nod in the West, Davis more than earned his spot not only in this game, but in the NBA MVP discussion as well.
Now in his fifth NBA season, Davis is the NBA's third-leading scorer with a 28.8 average. He ranks second in blocks (2.43), sixth in rebounds (12.1), and fourth in PER. In last night's win over Orlando, Davis grabbed his 3,000th career rebound, becoming the second player in New Orleans history to reach that mark.
Per @SynergySST, the diff. between the PPG Anthony Davis averages as P&R Roll Man & KAT, who ranks 2nd, is = the diff. between 2nd and 26th. pic.twitter.com/h826uztWLZ
— Josh Planos (@JPlanos) January 19, 2017
Davis has made three consecutive All-Star Game appearances including the 2014 game in New Orleans when he named as the replacement for Kobe Bryant. Davis was unable to play last
New Orleans is hosting its third NBA All-Star Game since 2008, two of which Davis will have gotten to play in. The game was previously scheduled to be played in Charlotte, N.C., but NBA Commissioner Adam Silver decided to move it because of North Carolina's controversial HB2 law.
The 2017 All-Star Game will take place on on Feb. 19 at the Smoothie King Center. He’ll likely be joined by several other Kentucky Wildcats, though they’ll have to make it as preserves.