Cleveland Cavaliers', Lebron James and Stephen Curry, of the Golden State Warrior, have been chosen as the team captains for the revamped NBA All-Star Game.

Earlier in October, The NBA announced changes to the traditional All Start Game format. Instead of having the usual East vs West game, the NBA has decided to turn the game into a 5 on 5 pickup game. Whichever player leads their respective conference in votes will get the chance to pick the players they play with at All-Star Weekend.

Fast forward four months later and we now have our two captains.

Lebron James leads the Eastern Conference with 2,638,294 votes, while Stephen Curry leads the West with 2,379,494.

The two players will get to choose among a pool of eight other players who have also been voted All-Stars. Those players are listed below.

Who made the cut?

Kevin Durant, Forward, Golden State Warriors. Often seen as the second-best player in the world, behind LeBron James, Durant fell a bit short of being an All-Star captain. Still, the 6'9" forward is having a fantastic season averaging 26 Pts, 6.9 Reb, 5.4 Ast, 2.1 Blk per game. Expect Durant to be the first player chosen in the draft.

Kyrie Irving, Guard, Boston Celtics. The Boston Celtics have been on fire and their hot start has much thought they could represent the East in the NBA finals.

This is largely due to the offseason acquisition of Kyrie Irving. The young point guard is averaging 24.1 Pts, 3.6 Reb, 5 Ast, 1.2 Stl.

James Harden, Guard, Houston Rockets. Maybe the frontrunner for MVP, Harden is putting the Rockets in a position to be legitimate threats to the Golden State Warriors. Harden and new teammate Chris Paul have lead Houston to the second-best record in the Western Conference.

Harden is averaging 31.7 Pts, 4.9 Red, 9 Ast, 1.8 Stl.

Giannis Antetokounmpo, Forward, Milwaukee Bucks. The Greek Freak might be the best young player in the NBA. The Milwaukee Buck's star who stands at 6'11" with a 7'0" wingspan can play every position on the floor.

Averaging 28.2 Pts, 10.1 Reb, 4.6 Ast, 1.5 Stl, 1.3 Blk Giannis should be the second player off the board.

Anthony Davis, Forward, New Orleans Pelicans. Possibly the most underrated superstar in the NBA. Davis is part of one of the few duos to be voted All-Stars. The 6'11" forward is known for his ability to play both forward and center while showing the ability to score from the post and perimeter. Davis is averaging 26.7 Pts, 10.5 Reb, 2.3 Ast, 1.1 Stl, 2.1 Blk.

Joel Embiid, Center, Philidelphia 76ers. The man behind the popular phrase, Trust The Process, Joel Embiid is widely considered to be the peoples' champ. The Philidelphia center is making his All-Star debut in only his second year of actually, playing NBA basketball.

Embiid is averaging 23.9 Pts, 11 Reb, 3.5 Ast, 1.9 Blk.

Demarcus Cousins, Center, New Orleans Pelicans. Demarcus 'Boogie' Cousins is known as the NBA's best center. The former Sacramento King has made the New Orleans Pelicans an interesting team to watch. Cousins combined with Anthony Davis is an almost unstoppable duo. Cousins is averaging 25.2 Pts, 12.7 Reb, 5.1 Ast, 1.6 Stl, 1.6 Blk.

DeMar DeRozan, Guard, Toronto Raptors.

Among all of these players, DeRozan might be the most improved. The Toronto guard has always been known for his ability to defend and score from mid-range, but this year, DeRozan has shown the ability to consistently score from three. DeRozan is currently averaging 25.2 Pts, 4.1 Reb, 5 Ast, 1.1 Stl.

NBA All-Star Game 2018

The reserves for the All-Star game will be announced on Tuesday, while the full team rosters will be announced on the 25th. The All-Star Game will be played Feb. 18 in Los Angeles.
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