through the LaBranch street entrance prior to tip-off of the 62nd NBA All-Star game on Sunday, Feb. 17, 2013. hours prior to tip-off of the 62nd NBA All-Star game on Sunday, Feb. 17, 2013. The arena crew make the last preparations as spectators start to fill the arena.
Coaches The coaches for the All-Star game were the head coaches who led the teams with the best winning percentages in their conference through the games of February 3, 2013.
Gregg Popovich of the
San Antonio Spurs clinched the West position after a win on January 30.
Erik Spoelstra of the
Miami Heat clinched the East position after a win over the
Toronto Raptors on February 3, 2013. The head coaches from the
previous year,
Tom Thibodeau and
Scott Brooks, were not eligible for selection.
Players The rosters for the All-Star Game were chosen in two ways. The starters were chosen via a fan ballot. Two guards and three frontcourt players who received the highest vote were named the All-Star starters. NBA head coaches voted for the reserves for their respective conferences, none of which could be players on their own team. Each coach selected two guards, three frontcourt players and two wild cards, with each selected player ranked in order of preference within each category. If a multi-position player was to be selected, coaches were encouraged to vote for the player at the position that was "most advantageous for the All-Star team," regardless of where the player was listed on the All-Star ballot or the position he was listed in box scores. If a player is unable to participate due to injury, the commissioner will select a replacement.
Kobe Bryant of the
Los Angeles Lakers topped the ballots with 1,591,437 votes, which earned him a starting position as a guard in the
Western Conference team. Bryant earned a record 15th consecutive All-Star selection.
Chris Paul,
Kevin Durant,
Blake Griffin, and
Dwight Howard completed the Western Conference starting position. All of the players from the West started in last year's All-Star Game, save for Howard who started for the East, and similar to last year, both Los Angeles teams, the
Lakers and the
Clippers, are represented by two players each, all of whom are starters. Also sending a pair of players to the All-Star Game were the
Oklahoma City Thunder, represented by Durant and
Russell Westbrook, and the
San Antonio Spurs, represented by
Tim Duncan and
Tony Parker. The
Golden State Warriors had an All-Star representative for the first time since
Latrell Sprewell was selected in
1997, with
David Lee. The Eastern Conference's leading vote-getter was
LeBron James, who finished with 1,583,646 votes.
Rajon Rondo,
Dwyane Wade,
Carmelo Anthony, and
Kevin Garnett completed the Eastern Conference starting positions. Did not participate due to injury. Brook Lopez was named Rajon Rondo's replacement by NBA commissioner
David Stern.
Erik Spoelstra chose Chris Bosh to start in place of the injured Rajon Rondo
Game The West led at the end of each quarter and won 143–138 behind
Chris Paul, who won
MVP honors scoring 20 points, handing out 15 assists and grabbing 4 steals. The West never led by more than eight points through the first three quarters, but they pushed the lead to double figures early in the fourth.
Kobe Bryant blocked two shots by
LeBron James late in the game, part of a late run to secure the game for the West.
Kevin Durant led all scorers with 30 points and became the first player in NBA history to score 30+ points in three consecutive All-Star games, while Bryant had nine points and eight assists.
Carmelo Anthony led the East with 26 points and 12 rebounds. James, who shot well during the latter part of the season's first half, shot only 7-for-18 while scoring 19 points. ==All-Star Weekend==