NBA All-Star 2018 Rosters, Possible Draft Order By LeBron James, Stephen Curry

The 2018 NBA All-Star Game rosters are set following Thursday’s draft between team captains LeBron James and Stephen Curry. James got the first pick because he received the most number of fan votes, and Curry got the first pick of the reserves once the starters were off the board.

The draft wasn’t televised and the order in which the players were selected hasn't been released. By taking a look at the two teams, however, it isn’t too difficult to figure out how the first few selections went.

Kevin Durant was clearly the No.1 pick of the draft. James used his first selection on Durant just seven months after he led the Golden State Warriors over the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2017 NBA Finals, winning the MVP award. Durant is fifth in the league with 26 points per game and second with 2.07 blocks per game.

Once Durant went off the board, Curry likely picked James Harden. Harden is probably the favorite to win the MVP award, leading the Houston Rockets to the NBA’s second-best record. After finishing as the runner-up for MVP in two of the last three years, Harden leads the league with 31.2 points per game and ranks third with 9.0 assists per game.

It’s possible that Giannis Antetokounmpo was Curry’s first pick, but the Milwaukee Bucks’ star was likely Curry’s second pick and the fourth overall selection. There’s little chance he was drafted any lower than that with his season averages of 28.2 points, 10.1 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game.

Anthony Davis was probably James’ second pick and Kyrie Irving likely went third to James and fifth overall. Davis is the best big name in the All-Star Game, ranking fourth in scoring while averaging a double-double. James drafted Irving, even though the Boston Celtics’ point guard requested a trade from the Cavaliers in the summer.

DeMarcus Cousins was probably James’ fourth and final pick among the starters. Cousins will play alongside Davis, with whom he starts in the New Orleans Pelicans’ frontcourt.

Curry took DeMar DeRozan and Joel Embiid with his third and fourth picks, though the exact order is unknown. Perhaps the Warriors’ point guard took Embiid to match the size of Team LeBron, which will start four players that are at least 6’8. Embiid is averaging 23.7 points, 10.9 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game in less than 32 minutes per night.

The order in which the reserves were drafted is harder to project. Russell Westbrook thought he might have been the last player taken, but there’s a much greater chance that he was the first non-starter picked by James.

Curry drafted both Draymond Green and Klay Thompson, giving the team three Warriors’ starters. James drafted teammate Kevin Love.

Here are the complete rosters for Team LeBron and Team Stephen, along with a guess at what the draft order might have been:

Team LeBron Team Stephen

1) Kevin Durant 2) James Harden

3) Anthony Davis 4) Giannis Antetokounmpo

5) Kyrie Irving 6) Joel Embiid

7) DeMarcus Cousins 8) DeMar DeRozan

10) Russell Westbrook 9) Klay Thompson

12) John Wall 11) Draymond Green

14) Kevin Love 13) Karl-Anthony Towns

16) Victor Oladipo 15) Jimmy Butler

18) LaMarcus Aldridge 17) Damian Lillard