NBA All-Stars Luka Dončić and Trae Young Headline U.S. vs World Showdown in 2020 NBA Rising Stars

PRESS RELEASE

Dončić and Young return to NBA Rising Stars after playing in last year’s game as rookies

NEW YORK, United States of America, January 31, 2020/ — NBA (NBA.com) All-Stars Luka Dončić of the Dallas Mavericks and Trae Young of the Atlanta Hawks lead the list of 20 players selected by NBA assistant coaches to play in the 2020 NBA Rising Stars on Friday, Feb. 14 at the United Center in Chicago.

The 26th Rising Stars will pit 10 first- and second-year NBA players from the United States against 10 first- and second-year NBA players from around the world in the league’s annual showcase of premier young talent during NBA All-Star. Rising Stars will air live at 9 p.m. ET on TNT and ESPN Radio in the United States. Tickets are available at NBAEvents.com.

Dončić (Slovenia) is joined on the World Team by New Orleans Pelicans guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker (Canada); Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton (Bahamas); New York Knicks guard/forward RJ Barrett (Canada); Memphis Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke (Canada); Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Canada); Washington Wizards forward Rui Hachimura (Japan) and center Moritz Wagner (Germany); Detroit Pistons guard/forward Svi Mykhailiuk (Ukraine); and Minnesota Timberwolves guard Josh Okogie (Nigeria).

Young is joined on the U.S. Team by Charlotte Hornets forwards Miles Bridges and PJ Washington and guard Devonte’ Graham; Chicago Bulls center Wendell Carter Jr.; Miami Heat guards Tyler Herro and Kendrick Nunn; Memphis Grizzlies forward Jaren Jackson Jr. and guard Ja Morant; and Golden State Warriors forward Eric Paschall.

Pelicans forward Zion Williamson, the No. 1 overall pick in NBA Draft 2019 presented by State Farm, has been selected by the NBA to join the U.S. Team as the replacement for the injured Carter, who has not played for the Bulls since sustaining a sprained right ankle on Jan 6. Carter is not expected to return to game action until after the All-Star break.

Dončić and Young return to NBA Rising Stars after playing in last year’s game as rookies. They have also been voted to start the 2020 NBA All-Star Game, marking the first time that multiple second-year NBA players will start an All-Star Game since 1996 (Grant Hill and Jason Kidd).

The U.S. Team includes three players from the Hornets and two each from the Heat and the Grizzlies. Miami’s Nunn and Memphis’ Morant have won both Kia NBA Rookies of the Month in the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference, respectively, this season.

The World Team features four players who participated as campers in Basketball Without Borders (BWB), the NBA and FIBA’s global basketball and development community outreach program: Ayton (BWB Global 2016), Barrett (BWB Global 2017), Hachimura (BWB Global 2016) and Gilgeous-Alexander (BWB Global 2016).

A record four Canadians are participating in Rising Stars: Alexander-Walker, Barrett, Clarke and Gilgeous-Alexander. Alexander-Walker and Gilgeous-Alexander are cousins.

Hachimura is the first player from Japan to be named to a Rising Stars roster. He became the first Japanese player ever selected in the first round of the NBA Draft when the Wizards made him the ninth pick in 2019.

NBA assistant coaches selected the Rising Stars rosters, with each of the league’s 30 teams submitting one ballot per coaching staff. A ballot consisted of four frontcourt players, four guards and two additional players at either position group for each team. Voters also had to choose a minimum of three first-year NBA players and three second-year NBA players for each team. Coaches were not permitted to vote for any player on their team.

The coaching staffs for the Rising Stars teams will consist of assistant coaches from the NBA All-Star Game. Rising Stars will be a 40-minute game with four 10-minute periods. An MVP award will be given out at the conclusion of the game. Click here (https://on.nba.com/3900gXR) for complete Rising Stars game rules.

As previously announced, rap artist and Chicago native Taylor Bennett will perform at halftime of Rising Stars. Bennett is the brother of Chance the Rapper, who will perform at halftime of the 2020 NBA All-Star Game.

NBA opening-night rosters for the 2019-20 season featured 108 international players from a record-tying 38 countries and territories. This marked the sixth consecutive season that opening-night rosters included at least 100 international players and that all 30 teams had at least one international player.

Below are the rosters for the 2020 NBA Rising Stars and a list of past results.

U.S. TEAM ROSTER

No.

Player (Team)

Pos.

Ht.

Wt.

Birthdate

College

Years

Miles Bridges (Charlotte)

6-6

225

03/21/1998

Michigan State

Wendell Carter Jr. (Chicago)*

6-10

270

04/16/1999

Duke

Devonte’ Graham (Charlotte)

6-1

195

02/22/1995

Kansas

Tyler Herro (Miami)

6-5

200

01/20/2000

Kentucky

Jaren Jackson Jr. (Memphis)

6-11

242

09/15/1999

Michigan State

Ja Morant (Memphis)

6-3

175

08/10/1999

Murray State

Kendrick Nunn (Miami)

6-2

190

08/03/1995

Oakland

Eric Paschall (Golden State)

6-6

255

11/04/1996

Villanova

PJ Washington (Charlotte)

6-7

230

08/23/1998

Kentucky

Zion Williamson (New Orleans)^

6-6

285

07/06/2000

Duke

Trae Young (Atlanta)

*Injured/will not play

^Injury replacement

6-1

180

09/19/1998

Oklahoma

WORLD TEAM ROSTER

Prior to NBA/

No.

Player (Team)

Pos.

Ht.

Wt.

Birthdate

Home Country

Years

Nickeil Alexander-Walker (New Orleans)

6-5

205

09/02/1998

Virginia Tech/Canada

Deandre Ayton (Phoenix)

6-11

250

07/23/1998

Arizona/Bahamas

RJ Barrett (New York)

G/F

6-6

214

06/14/2000

Duke/Canada

Brandon Clarke (Memphis)

6-8

210

09/19/1996

Gonzaga/Canada

Luka Dončić (Dallas)

G/F

6-7

230

02/28/1999

Real Madrid (Spain)/Slovenia

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City)

6-5

181

07/12/1998

Kentucky/Canada

Rui Hachimura (Washington)

6-8

230

02/08/1998

Gonzaga/Japan

Svi Mykhailiuk (Detroit)

G/F

6-7

205

06/10/1997

Kansas/Ukraine

Josh Okogie (Minnesota)

6-4

212

09/01/1998

Georgia Tech/Nigeria

Moritz Wagner (Washington)

6-11

245

04/26/1997

Michigan/Germany

NBA RISING STARS RESULTS

1994 – Phenoms 74, Sensations 68

2008 – Sophomores 136, Rookies 109

1995 – White 83, Green 79 (OT)

2009 – Sophomores 122, Rookies 116

1996 – East 94, West 92

2010 – Rookies 140, Sophomores 128

1997 – East 96, West 91

2011 – Rookies 148, Sophomores 140

1998 – East 85, West 80

2012 – Team Chuck 146, Team Shaq 133

2000 – Rookies 92, Sophomores 83 (OT)

2013 – Team Chuck 163, Team Shaq 135

2001 – Sophomores 121, Rookies 113

2014 – Team Hill 142, Team Webber 136

2002 – Rookies 103, Sophomores 97

2015 – World Team 121, U.S. Team 112

2003 – Sophomores 132, Rookies 112

2016 – U.S. Team 157, World Team 154

2004 – Sophomores 142, Rookies 118

2017 – World Team 150, U.S. Team 141

2005 – Sophomores 133, Rookies 106

2018 – World Team 155, U.S. Team 124

2006 – Sophomores 106, Rookies 96

2019 – U.S. Team 161, World Team 144

2007 – Sophomores 155, Rookies 114

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of National Basketball Association (NBA).

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About NBA All-Star 2020:
NBA (NBA.com) All-Star 2020 in Chicago will bring together the most talented and passionate players in the league’s history for a global celebration of the game. The 69th NBA All-Star Game, which will take place on Sunday, Feb. 16 at the United Center, will reach fans in more than 200 countries and territories in more than 40 languages. TNT will televise the All-Star Game for the 18th consecutive year, marking Turner Sports’ 35th year of NBA All-Star coverage. United Center will also host Rising Stars on Friday, Feb. 14 and State Farm All-Star Saturday Night on Saturday, Feb. 15. The NBA All-Star Celebrity Game presented by Ruffles on Feb. 14 and the NBA All-Star Practice & Media Day presented by AT&T on Feb. 15 will take place at Wintrust Arena.

SOURCE
National Basketball Association (NBA)

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