Dubs' Curry named All-Star starter, again

Stephen Curry will be heading to Salt Lake City next month for the upcoming NBA All-Star Game.

Shaquille O'Neal got the honor of introducing the Warriors star as an All-Star starter during TNT's broadcast Thursday evening.

“My favorite player in the world, Stephen Curry,” O'Neal said.

Surely plenty of Bay Area fans would agree.

This will be Curry's ninth All-Star start in his 14-year

NBA career, marking the most in Warriors' history. He surpassed Hall of Famer Rick Barry for the secondmost All-Star selections in franchise history and now sits behind only Paul Arizin, who made 10 All-Star appearances over the course of his Hall of Fame career.

Curry has been part of All-Star Weekend festivities in 10 of his previous 11 seasons, winning the 3-point contest two of his seven tries. He played in six consecutive All-Star Games from 2014 through 2019 before a fractured hand limited him to only five games during the forgettable 2019-20 campaign. He would return to the All-Star Game in each of the following three seasons, including this one.

Curry put on a show last year in Cleveland, pouring in 50 points and making a record 16 3-pointers in a flashy showing that earn him the Most Valuable Player award for the game.

While the Warriors have hovered around .500 for most of the season, Curry, who will turn 35 in March, has been a bright spot for the reigning champs. He's averaged 29.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists in 33 games this season while shooting 48.7% from the field and 42% from deep. Curry has also knocked down the third-most 3s in the league this season (161), despite missing 11 games due to a partially dislocated left shoulder.

Other Western Conference starters include: Mavericks star Luka Doncic, Lakers star LeBron James, Nuggets big man and two-time reigning MVP Nikola Jokic and Pelicans star Zion Williamson.