NBA Rising Stars 2023: Player pool revealed / News - Basketnews.com

Paolo Banchero, Bennedict Mathurin, Keegan Murray, Jabari Smith Jr., Scottie Barnes, Josh Giddey, Jalen Green, Evan Mobley, Alperen Sengun, Franz Wagner, and others highlight the player pool for the 2023 Rising Stars Game.

Credit: USA TODAY Sports-Scanpix Credit USA TODAY Sports-Scanpix

The 2023 Jordan Rising Stars is set for Friday, Feb. 17 (9 p.m. ET, TNT) at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City as part of NBA All-Star 2023.

For the second straight season, Rising Stars will feature a three-game mini-tournament among four teams comprised of NBA rookies, sophomores, and NBA G League Players.

THE PLAYER POOL

The 28 players set to participate in the Jordan Rising Stars include 11 NBA rookies, 10 NBA sophomores, and seven NBA G League players.

Rookies and Sophomores: Paolo Banchero, Jalen Duren, AJ Griffin, Jaden Ivey, Walker Kessler, Bennedict Mathurin, Keegan Murray, Andrew Nembhard, Jabari Smith Jr., Jeremy Sochan, Jalen Williams, Jose Alvarado, Scottie Barnes, Josh Giddey, Jalen Green, Quentin Grimes, Bones Hyland, Evan Mobley, Trey Murphy III, Alperen Sengun, and Franz Wagner.

G League: Scoot Henderson, Sidy Cissoko, Mojave King, Kenneth Lofton Jr., Leonard Miller, Mac McClung, and Scotty Pippen Jr.

The 21 NBA players, selected by NBA assistant coaches, will be drafted onto three seven-player teams. The seven NBA G League players, selected by the NBA league office, will comprise the fourth team.

To select the 21 NBA player participants, each NBA team submitted a rookie ballot and a sophomore ballot featuring four frontcourt players, four guards, and two additional players of any position, in order of preference. Coaches were not allowed to vote for any player on their team.

Points were awarded based on where a player was ranked on each ballot, and the players with the highest total points made the cut.

THE LEGENDARY COACHES

The Jordan Rising Stars teams comprised of rookies and sophomores will be led by NBA legends serving as honorary head coaches: Pau Gasol, a six-time NBA All-Star and two-time NBA champion; Joakim Noah, a two-time NBA All-Star and 2013-14 Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year; and Deron Williams, a three-time NBA All-Star and two-time All-NBA Second Team member.

The team of NBA G League players will be led by 2008-09 Kia NBA Sixth Man of the Year and 2011 NBA champion Jason Terry, a current Jazz assistant coach and former head coach of the NBA G League's Grand Rapids Gold.

Assistant coaches from the NBA All-Star Game coaching staffs will join the legends in coaching the teams during the Jordan Rising Stars games.

The Boston Celtics' coaching staff will lead Team Giannis in the NBA All-Star Game. Team LeBron's coaching staff has yet to be determined.

THE DRAFT

While the NBA G League team is set, the three teams comprised of NBA rookies and sophomores will be determined through the Jordan Rising Stars Draft, with Gasol (Team Pau), Noah (Team Joakim), and Williams (Team Deron) each choosing seven-player rosters.

THE FORMAT

All three games in the Jordan Rising Stars will be played on Friday, Feb. 17 from Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City beginning at 9 p.m. ET.

All three games will be played to a Final Target Score, which means the game will end on a made basket or free throw rather than time expiring.

The two semifinal games – Game 1 and Game 2 – will be played to a Final Target Score of 40.

The final game, featuring the winners, will be played to a Final Target Score of 25 to determine the tournament champion.

Game 1: Team A vs. Team B

Game 2: Team C vs. Team D

Game 3: Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2

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