Super odds for this ALL-STAR
THE 2023 NBA All-Star game has more talent than you can poke a stick at, and its new playground teamselection wrinkle promises to deliver more fireworks than the truckie dropping off at Sydney Harbour Bridge on New Year’s Eve.
NBA ALL-STAR GAME 2023 TEAM LEBRON: $1.66 TEAM GIANNIS: $2.18
WHAT an absolute treat this year’s All-Star game will be.
The game itself leans towards being a chuckand-giggle affair for three quarters before the teams play some defence towards the end.
But that’s changed with the introduction of a variation on the ‘Elam Ending’, where the fourthquarter game clock doesn’t count down.
Instead, the teams play to a set total: the team leading heading into the fourth quarter’s score, plus 24 points (a tribute to Kobe Bryant).
It’s set to change again with the team captains LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo - selecting their squads ‘playground’style just before tip-off, picking the reserves and then starters one-by-one.
It makes it tough to pick ahead of the team selection.
But having witnessed LeBron James’ team-building skills in LA the past few offseasons, and knowing that Giannis is 0-2 as captain against LeBron in All-Star games, the Greek Freak will go for the jugular and build the better, hungrier team. THE PICK:
Team Giannis H2H
NBA ALL-STAR GAME MVP
THE All-Star MVP usually comes down to who simply tries the hardest, but this year’s field is littered with stars with a point to prove.
Injuries might limit standout picks like Giannis ($8); two-time MVP runnerup Joel Embiid ($9), who would usually lay waste to everyone in front of him; and Luka Doncic ($9.50), who has the game to wow voters but is nursing a heel injury.
So look for NBA Kanye aka Kyrie Irving ($8) wanting to wash the taste of his ugly exit from Brooklyn from the mouths of fans with some razzle dazzle.
Jayson Tatum ($10) will assert his credentials as top dog; Donovan Mitchell ($11) will fill it up; or Ja Morant ($11) could make it his life’s purpose to put each and every member of the opposing team on a poster by spectacularly dunking on them.
Beloved vets such as Damian Lillard ($8) and LeBron ($8) could also give it a shake, but look to who has a point to prove.
THE PICK:
Joel Embiid $9 or Jayson Tatum $10
* Odds correct at 4pm yesterday
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