Kevin Durant revealed he was the first pick in the NBA All-Star draft.
As for the rest of the draft between LeBron James and Stephen Curry, Brian Windhorst of ESPN provided the entire starter round plus the first pick of the reserve round:
Starters
1. Kevin Durant (LeBron)
2. Giannis Antetokounmpo (Curry)
3. Anthony Davis (LeBron)
4. James Harden (Curry)
5. Kyrie Irving (LeBron)
6. Joel Embiid (Curry)
7. DeMarcus Cousins (LeBron)
8. DeMar DeRozan (Curry)
Reserves
1. Klay Thompson (Curry)
The biggest surprise is how high LeBron took Irving. Not only are there personal issues between the former Cavaliers teammates, Curry and Irving are both point guards. Drafting Harden meant Curry needed another lead ball-handler even less. LeBron probably could have had his pick between Embiid and Cousins then gotten Irving No. 7. Maybe LeBron got his preference between the bigs, anyway. But, yeah, despite everything else, LeBron didn’t shy from drafting Irving. That draws intrigue.
The dreaded last pick of a round: DeMar DeRozan. He now wears the scarlet letter of being the least respected All-Star starter in the world’s best basketball league. How will he ever go on? Thankfully, not televising the draft spared him from experiencing this indignity in front of a mass audience.
After LeBron picked first among the starters, Curry made the first selection among reserves. Predictably, he chose one of two Warriors, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green. I wonder how Green feels about Thompson getting the nod. Green won’t be out for revenge in the All-Star game, though, as Curry drafted him later. Maybe where was picked will get leaked later.
