Four Seven-Player Teams to Compete in Mini-Tournament on Friday, Feb. 17 at NBA All-Star 2023 (9 p.m. ET/7 p.m. MT, TNT); NBA Rookies and Sophomores to Be Drafted onto Three Teams; NBA G League Players to Comprise Fourth Team, NBA Legends Pau Gasol, Joakim Noah, Jason Terry and Deron Williams to Serve as Honorary Head Coaches.
The NBA announced the 28 players who have earned spots to compete in the 2023 Jordan Rising Stars, which will take place on Friday, Feb. 17 at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City as part of NBA All-Star 2023. The annual showcase of premier young talent, featuring a mini-tournament with four teams and three games, will air live at 9 p.m. ET/7 p.m. MT on TNT.
The player pool, first revealed on the NBA App and listed below, consists of 11 NBA rookies, 10 second-year NBA players and seven NBA G League players. The 21 NBA players, selected by NBA assistant coaches, will be drafted onto three seven-player teams. The seven NBA G League players, selected by the league office, will comprise the fourth team.
Four NBA legends will serve as honorary head coaches for Jordan Rising Stars: six-time NBA All-Star and two-time NBA champion Pau Gasol; two-time NBA All-Star and 2013-14 Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year Joakim Noah; 2008-09 Kia NBA Sixth Man of the Year and 2011 NBA champion Jason Terry; and three-time NBA All-Star and former Utah Jazz standout Deron Williams.
Gasol (Team Pau), Noah (Team Joakim) and Williams (Team Deron) will select their teams through the NBA Rising Stars Draft, which will be held at a later date. Terry (Team Jason), a current Jazz assistant coach and a former head coach of the NBA G League’s Grand Rapids Gold, will coach the team of NBA G League players.
All three games in Jordan Rising Stars will be played to a Final Target Score, meaning that each game will end with a made basket or a made free throw instead of with the clock running out. The semifinal games will be played to a Final Target Score of 40. The final game will be played to a Final Target Score of 25.
Team A will face Team B in the first semifinal (Game 1), and Team C will play Team D in the second semifinal (Game 2). The winner of Game 1 will meet the winner of Game 2 in the final (Game 3).
In selecting the NBA players for Jordan Rising Stars, each NBA team submitted one ballot per coaching staff. Each coaching staff selected four frontcourt players, four guards and two additional players at either position, in order of preference, for the rookie ballot and the sophomore ballot. Coaches were not permitted to vote for any player on their team.
The NBA participants for Jordan Rising Stars were determined by the total points each player received from the ballots. Points were awarded based on where a player was ranked on each ballot. The player pool includes an additional rookie based on the ballot results.
Assistant coaches from the NBA All-Star Game coaching staffs will join the NBA legends in coaching the Jordan Rising Stars teams. The Boston Celtics’ coaching staff will lead Team Giannis in the NBA All-Star Game. Team LeBron’s coaching staff has yet to be determined.
Tickets for Jordan Rising Stars are available at NBAEvents.com and through the NBA Events App, which can be downloaded in the Apple Store (http://bit.ly/3kZhkIK) or Google Play Store (http://bit.ly/3RvEzGr).
Below is the player pool for Jordan Rising Stars.
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JORDAN RISING STARS: NBA PLAYERS |
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NBA Rookies |
NBA Sophomores |
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Paolo Banchero (Frontcourt, Orlando Magic) |
Jose Alvarado (Guard, New Orleans Pelicans) |
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Jalen Duren (Frontcourt, Detroit Pistons) |
Scottie Barnes (Frontcourt, Toronto Raptors) |
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AJ Griffin (Guard, Atlanta Hawks) |
Josh Giddey (Guard, Oklahoma City Thunder) |
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Jaden Ivey (Guard, Detroit Pistons) |
Jalen Green (Guard, Houston Rockets) |
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Walker Kessler (Frontcourt, Utah Jazz) |
Quentin Grimes (Guard, New York Knicks) |
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Bennedict Mathurin (Guard, Indiana Pacers) |
Bones Hyland (Guard, Denver Nuggets) |
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Keegan Murray (Frontcourt, Sacramento Kings) |
Evan Mobley (Frontcourt, Cleveland Cavaliers) |
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Andrew Nembhard (Guard, Indiana Pacers) |
Trey Murphy III (Frontcourt, New Orleans Pelicans) |
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Jabari Smith Jr. (Frontcourt, Houston Rockets) |
Alperen Şengün (Frontcourt, Houston Rockets) |
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Jeremy Sochan (Frontcourt, San Antonio Spurs) |
Franz Wagner (Frontcourt, Orlando Magic) |
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Jalen Williams (Guard, Oklahoma City Thunder) |
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JORDAN RISING STARS: NBA G LEAGUE PLAYERS |
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Sidy Cissoko (Frontcourt, NBA G League Ignite) |
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Scoot Henderson (Guard, NBA G League Ignite) |
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Mojave King (Guard, NBA G League Ignite) |
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Kenneth Lofton Jr. (Frontcourt, Memphis Hustle/Memphis Grizzlies)* |
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Mac McClung (Guard, Delaware Blue Coats) |
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Leonard Miller (Frontcourt, NBA G League Ignite) |
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Scotty Pippen Jr. (Guard, South Bay Lakers/Los Angeles Lakers)* |
*Two-way player
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of National Basketball Association (NBA).
About NBA All-Star 2023:
NBA All-Star 2023 in Salt Lake City, hosted in conjunction with the Utah Jazz, will bring together the most talented and passionate players for a global celebration of the league. The NBA All-Star Game will take place on Sunday, Feb. 19 at Vivint Arena, home to the Jazz. TNT will televise the NBA All- Star Game for the 21st consecutive year, marking Turner Sports’ 38th year of NBA All-Star coverage. Vivint Arena will also host Jordan Rising Stars on Friday, Feb. 17 and State Farm All-Star Saturday Night on Saturday, Feb. 18.
About Jordan Brand:
Jordan Brand, a division of NIKE, Inc., is a premium brand of athletic footwear, apparel and accessories inspired by the dynamic legacy, vision and direct involvement of Michael Jordan. The brand made its debut in 1997 and has grown into a complete collection of men’s, women’s and kid’s product.
Source: Apo-Opa
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