All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles is upon us, and we've got you covered from Friday to Sunday. Here's a viewers' and visitors' guide to everything happening in La La Land.
Jump to: Celeb game | Rising Stars | All-Star Saturday | All-Star Game
All-Star celebrity game: Friday, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN)
The stars are out ... of their element: What better way to kick off All-Star Weekend than a matchup involving NBA legends, WNBA players, sports stars and, of course ... celebrities with various levels of basketball skill? Scheduled to play: Paul Pierce, Tracy McGrady, Candace Parker, Stefanie Dolson, Jamie Foxx, Common, Bubba Watson and one half of the Property Brothers, just to name a few. (Click here for the full rosters).
Did we mention the 4-point line? No? Well, there's a 4-point line.
Guess who's back? An All-Star celebrity game in L.A. wouldn't be complete without, you guessed it, The Biebs! That's right, after a seven-year hiatus, 2011 celebrity game MVP Justin Bieber will hit the court for Team Lakers. And in case you forgot, here's a look at his previous performance in the game:
The NBA dunk contest has become one of the most exciting All-Star events. Take a look back at the dunks that changed the game.
Rising Stars Challenge: Friday, 9 p.m. ET (TNT)
Future stars take the stage: After a Friday night appetizer of celeb hoops, the future of the NBA hits the court at Staples Center for the Rising Stars Challenge. For the fourth straight year, the U.S. faces the world.
Sixers vs. everyone: The World Team includes a trio of Philadelphia 76ers stars in Rookie of the Year front-runner Ben Simmons, All-Star starter Joel Embiid and big man Dario Saric. The U.S. Team counters with Rookie of the Year contenders Jayson Tatum, Donovan Mitchell and Dennis Smith Jr.
Points! The most combined points in the game is 311, set in Toronto during All-Star Weekend 2016. Maybe the bright lights of Hollywood -- and some warmer temperatures compared to February in Canada -- will lead to a new Rising Stars record.
Betting line: USA (-2) vs. World | Over/under: 297.5 (via Westgate Las Vegas SportsBook)
Rising Stars by future potential: Jonathan Givony and Mike Schmitz draft the NBA's best rookies and sophomores to build two teams for five years from now.
More: Full rosters | Experts' picks | Rising Stars history | Tickets
All-Star Saturday night: 8 p.m. ET (TNT)
Here are the rules for each of the night's events:
Skills contest: A field of eight (four frontcourt, four backcourt players) competes head-to-head in a three-round timed tournament, with the brackets' two winners battling for the title in the final round. Players must complete the following obstacle-course drills in order.
Ballhandling
Passing
Layup or dunk
3-point shot
Here is a look at the Skills contest course:
Odds:
Jamal Murray +350
Lou Williams +350
Al Horford +500
Spencer Dinwiddie +550
Lauri Markkanen +600
Buddy Hield +600
Joel Embiid +700
Andre Drummond +1200
3-point contest: Eight of the game's best shooters take the court for the two-round competition, with each player having 60 seconds to shoot as many of the 25 balls as he can. Four of the five racks include four regulation NBA balls (one point) and one "money" ball (two points). The fifth rack consists only of money balls and can be placed at any of the five shooting locations.
Round 1: Seven shooters take the court in random order, while the defending champion -- Houston's Eric Gordon -- will shoot last.
Championship: The top three from Round 1 will compete in the championship round, with the lowest Round 1 score competing first and highest Round 1 score competing last.
Tiebreakers: If necessary, a 30-second tiebreaker would decide the final spot in the championship round; a 60-second tiebreaker would decide the 2018 champion.
Odds:
Klay Thompson +180
Eric Gordon +450
Wayne Ellington +550
Paul George +600
Devin Booker +600
Bradley Beal +800
Kyle Lowry +1000
Tobias Harris +1200
Dunk contest: Four of the game's best young dunkers -- Victor Oladipo, Dennis Smith Jr., Larry Nance Jr., and Donovan Mitchell -- take center stage in All-Star Saturday night's premier event.
Round 1: Each competitor will complete two dunks, and the two players with the highest composite scores will move on to the championship round.
Championship: The remaining two competitors will each complete two dunks; the player with the highest composite score is crowned champion. As is the case for Round 1, the maximum score per round is 100, while the lowest score is 60.
Tiebreakers: If necessary, a one-dunk "dunk-off" will determine who advances to the championship round or who is crowned champion. If, after a championship-round dunk-off two players are still tied, a "judges' choice" will determine a 2018 winner.
More: Participants | Experts' picks | Previous winners | Tickets
67th All-Star Game: Sunday, 8 p.m. ET (TNT)
Team Stephen vs. Team LeBron: For the first time in NBA All-Star history, the two teams were decided using a playground-style draft. Top vote-getters Stephen Curry and LeBron James served as captains.
Awkward! The All-Star draft created a few interesting matchups -- and teammate dynamics -- to watch for on Sunday.
Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook sharing the All-Star court once again (thanks, Captain LeBron!)
James and Kyrie Irving will be in the same uniform for the first time since Irving was traded to the Boston Celtics.
Durant is once again up against his current Warriors teammates Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green (remember the last time that happened?).
Race to 400? The record for most points in an All-Star Game is 374, set last season in New Orleans, and no team has ever hit the 200-point mark (the West's 196 in 2016 is the most). Is this the year both of those marks fall? The combined point total has increased each of the past four years, so we're saying there's a chance!
Courtside Walk of Fame: It's Los Angeles after all, so keep an eye on the sidelines for stars such as Beyonce and Jay Z, Jack Nicholson, Chris Rock, Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Queen Latifah, Billy Crystal, Kevin Hart, Mark Wahlberg, Fergie and Migos (just to name a few).
Plenty of L.A. All-Stars ... sort of: For the first time since 2005 in Denver and the first time in four Los Angeles-hosted games, the host city is without an All-Star (excluding 2007 in Las Vegas). But not to worry, the L.A.-area is well-represented with hometown stars this year:
James Harden is from Los Angeles and played at Artesia High School before two seasons at Arizona State. Harden is a fixture in the L.A.-based Drew League.
Russell Westbrook is from Hawthorne, California, and attended Leuzinger High School in Lawndale -- about 20 minutes from Staples Center -- before playing two seasons at UCLA alongside fellow All-Star Kevin Love, who is out because of an injury. Westbrook is classic Hollywood. How else would you explain his impeccable fashion sense?
DeMar DeRozan was born and raised in Compton, California, and attended Compton High School before one season at USC.
Paul George is from Palmdale, California, and played two seasons at Fresno State, and he has been in Lakers' fans minds all season. If you haven't heard, the Lakers haven't been exactly quiet on their desire to sign George, who will be a free agent this summer.
Klay Thompson was born in Los Angeles but played college hoops at Washington State. His father, Mychal Thompson, played four-plus seasons with the Lakers, winning two titles in 1987 and 1988.
More: Full rosters | Experts' picks | ASG history | Tickets
Betting line: LeBron (-2) vs. Stephen | Over/under: 340.5 (via Westgate Las Vegas SportsBook)
Party on!
What's an All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles -- or any All-Star Weekend -- without three days of off-the-court festivities? ESPN senior writer Arash Markazi runs down of some of the weekend's best, if you're lucky enough to grab an invite:
Friday
The hardest party to get into during NBA All-Star Weekend will be thrown by Michael Jordan, who will be celebrating his 55th birthday at midnight with a surprise musical performance at an undisclosed location in Los Angeles. If it sounds secretive, it's because it is. Jordan Brand is being tight-lipped about details on the exclusive party for His Airness.
Turner is throwing a party at the Goldstein Residence, the home of millionaire and NBA superfan Jimmy Goldstein. Even if you haven't heard of Goldstein or his home, which has been featured in Architectural Digest, it should look familiar to party goers. It served as a backdrop in movies such as Charlie's Angels and The Big Lebowski as well as music videos for Snoop Dogg and G Eazy.
Saturday
Stance, the official sock of the NBA, is throwing its annual Spades Tournament and party in downtown Los Angeles, headlined by Dwyane Wade and James Harden.
GQ is throwing the most exclusive Saturday night party at downtown Los Angeles' newest hot spot, NoMad. The main attraction of the evening will be a musical performance from party host Cardi B.
Sunday
After two (or more) straight nights of partying, brunch on Sunday has become an annual NBA All-Star Weekend tradition. This year, Bleacher Report, Mitchell & Ness and NBA agent Bill Duffy are all throwing brunch and day parties in Los Angeles before the NBA All-Star Game.