The Minnesota Timberwolves’ Karl-Anthony Towns, last season’s unanimous NBA Rookie of the Year, and the Philadelphia 76ers’ Joel Embiid, who has won both NBA Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month awards this season, highlight the list of 20 players selected by the league’s assistant coaches to play in the Rising Stars Challenge on Friday, Feb. 17 during NBA All-Star 2017 in New Orleans.
Towns, who helped the U.S. Team defeat the World Team 157-154 in last year’s Rising Stars Challenge, is one of two NBA players averaging at least 22.0 points and 11.0 rebounds this season (the New Orleans Pelicans’ Anthony Davis is the other).
The U.S. Team also features the Phoenix Suns’ Devin Booker, who is averaging 20.6 points and has scored at least 20 in each of his last 10 games, and the Indiana Pacers’ Myles Turner, who ranks third in the NBA in blocked shots (2.30 bpg) to go with 15.7 points and 7.6 rebounds.
Joining Towns, Booker and Turner on the U.S. Team are Malcolm Brogdon of the Milwaukee Bucks, Marquese Chriss of the Suns, Brandon Ingram and D’Angelo Russell of the Los Angeles Lakers, Frank Kaminsky of the Charlotte Hornets, Jahlil Okafor of the 76ers and Jonathon Simmons of the San Antonio Spurs.
The World Team is anchored by Embiid (Cameroon), who leads all rookies in scoring (19.8 ppg), rebounding (7.8 rpg) and blocks (2.47 bpg), as well as two members of the 2015-16 NBA All-Rookie First Team in Serbian center Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets (15.2 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 3.9 apg this season) and Latvian forward Kristaps Porzingis of the New York Knicks (18.9 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 1.92 bpg).
Jokic is one of three Nuggets players on the World Team, along with Emmanuel Mudiay (Democratic Republic of the Congo) and Jamal Murray (Canada).
Rounding out the World Team are Danté Exum (Australia) and Trey Lyles (Canada) of the Utah Jazz, Buddy Hield (Bahamas) of the Pelicans, Domantas Sabonis (Lithuania) of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Dario Saric (Croatia) of the 76ers.