NEW YORK — Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball and San Antonio Spurs guard Dejounte Murray were named to the NBA All-Star Game on Monday as injury replacements for Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant and Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green.
The league also announced that Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum, who was selected as a reserve, will replace Durant as a starter.
The 71st NBA All-Star Game is scheduled for Feb. 20 in Cleveland.
This is the first All-Star selection for Ball, last year’s Rookie of the Year.
The 20-year-old Ball becomes the fourth-youngest All-Star in NBA history. He is averaging 19.6 points, 7.5 assists, 7.1 rebounds and 1.47 steals in 47 games for Charlotte.
Murray is also a first-time All-Star. The 25-year-old is averaging career highs of 19.6 points, 9.2 assists, 8.4 rebounds and an NBA-leading 2.1 steals in 47 games. His 10 triple-doubles are the second most in the league and a single-season record for the Spurs.
Durant, a 12-time All-Star, will not play because of a sprained medial collateral ligament in his left knee, which has sidelined him for the last 11 games. Green has a lower back injury that has kept him out of action the last 14 games. Green is a four-time All-Star selection.
Durant and LeBron James are the team captains for the game and will select their rosters on Thursday.
MONDAY’S GAMES
RAPTORS 116, HORNETS 101: Pascal Siakam had 24 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists, and visiting Toronto won its sixth straight.
Gary Trent Jr. scored 24 points, and Fred VanVleet and OG Anunoby each had 20 points for the Raptors, who began a stretch of 8 of 9 games on the road with a convincing win. Scottie Barnes added 15 points as the Raptors’ starters accounted for all but 13 points.
Miles Bridges scored 25 points to lead the Hornets, who lost their fifth consecutive game.
HEAT 121, WIZARDS 100: Bam Adebayo scored 21 points and Jimmy Butler had 19 as Eastern Conference-leading Miami won at Washington.
Miami won its third straight and improved to 3-2 on a six-game trip.
Corey Kispert equaled his career high with 20 points for the Wizards, who lost for the ninth time in 11 games. They are a season-low five games under .500 after opening 10-3.
WARRIORS 110, THUNDER 98: Klay Thompson scored 21 points and visiting Golden State won its ninth straight.
After the Thunder rallied late in the fourth quarter to cut Golden State’s lead to five, Thompson hit two 3-pointers – including one with just over a minute remaining – to put the Warriors up nine.
Stephen Curry added 18 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds for the Warriors, who shot 50% from the field.
SUNS 127, BULLS 124: Devin Booker scored 38 points, and NBA leading-Phoenix hung on to win at Chicago.
The Suns led by as many as 27 points in the third quarter and withstood a push down the stretch to win for the 13th time in 14 games. They improved to 43-10 overall and a league-leading 21-5 on the road.
Chicago’s DeMar DeRozan scored 38, coming off a season-high 45-point performance in Sunday’s loss to Philadelphia.
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