On Friday, LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo will select their teams for the 2020 NBA All-Star Game.
James and Antetokounmpo will draft the eight remaining players from the starter pool in the First Round and then all 14 players from the reserve pool in the Second Round. The captains will make their selections without regard to a player's conference affiliation or position.
MORE: All of the details on the All-Star draft
Ahead of the event, two members of our NBA.com Staff held a mock draft to get a sense of how the draft might go. Drafting for Team LeBron was Scott Rafferty (@crabdribbles). Drafting for Team Giannis was Micah Adams (@MicahAdams13).
Once each round was completed — starters first, followed by reserves — we simulated a game of NBA 2K20 to see which team would be crowned the champions in a winner-takes-all game.
Below are the results.
Enjoy!
Starters
Team LeBron selects: Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers
Rafferty: Not only is he teammates with LeBron right now, Anthony Davis is almost certainly going to turn down his player option for next season to be a free agent this offseason, so I'm not going to mess this up for LeBron. No need to overthink this.
MORE: Every All-Star record held by LeBron
Team Giannis selects: Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks
Adams: You just gift-wrapped the one player in the league most capable of unleashing the most dominant version of the Greek Freak. I'll take Luka Doncic and thank you for not thinking.
Next!
Team LeBron selects: Kawhi Leonard, LA Clippers
Rafferty: Let's go with the only guy who has shown that he can slow down Giannis then. We can forget that LeBron and Kawhi Leonard are now rivals for one weekend, right?
Team Giannis selects: Trae Young, Atlanta Hawks
Adams: Just say what you're really thinking: LeBron is scared of losing to Kawhi again.
I'm going to Buck conventional wisdom here a bit. We can forget that Luka and Trae Young were traded for each other for one weekend, right?
Team LeBron selects: Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers
Rafferty: Ahh, yes, because if you have Giannis on your team, you want to load up on ball dominant players.
I'll take Joel Embiid next. We know Davis likes to play against another big man and Embiid also has some history of slowing down Giannis.
Team Giannis selects: James Harden, Houston Rockets
Adams: I want every guard capable of catching fire from downtown. Why double down when you can triple down? Give me James Harden.
That's right.
Giannis surrounded by Doncic, Young and Harden. I'll also freely admit ... Young getting picked ahead of Harden is pretty disrespectful. But I digress.
Team LeBron selects: Pascal Siakam, Toronto Raptors
Rafferty: I'm taking Pascal Siakam because: 1) he's really good and 2) I want the biggest team in the world. I also don't need a point guard with LeBron running the show.
Team Giannis selects: Kemba Walker, Boston Celtics
Adams: Good. I wanted Kemba Walker anyways. Give me Giannis and every guard.
| Team LeBron | Team Giannis |
| F - LeBron James | G - Trae Young |
| F - Kawhi Leonard | G - Kemba Walker |
| F - Pascal Siakam | G - James Harden |
| F - Anthony Davis | G - Luka Doncic |
| C - Joel Embiid | F - Giannis Antetokounmpo |
Reserves
Team Giannis selects: Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets
Adams: I'm hogging every good passer not named LeBron, so why stop now? Give me Nikola Jokic, the best passing big of all-time and the most unselfish player in this game.
Team LeBron selects: Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers
Rafferty: Good pick, but that means I get the guy who hasn't missed a shot yet in 2020.
Team Giannis selects: Ben Simmons, Philadelphia 76ers
Adams: I immediately regret my decision. Dame was the most obvious pick in the world for my team and once again, he just gets overlooked.
I will, however, keep doing everything in my power to add every great passer, so give me Ben Simmons.
Many have often wondered what Simmons could do if he was the focal point of a team built around him like the Bucks have done around Giannis. Now he gets to learn from the best for a weekend.
MORE: Check out the new All-Star jerseys!
Team LeBron selects: Chris Paul, Oklahoma City Thunder
Rafferty: Since they're good friends, it feels wrong to not take Chris Paul with him still on the board.
Plus, adding the most clutch player in the league this season secures me the win if this game is close down the stretch.
Team Giannis selects: Khris Middleton, Milwaukee Bucks
Adams: I have to take Khris Middleton, right? There are sexier picks. There are smarter picks. There are more intriguing picks. But I can't risk not having my captain's actual teammate along for the ride.
Team LeBron selects: Jimmy Butler, Miami Heat
Rafferty: I'm surprised you didn't take him with your first pick of the second round, honestly.
It's disrespectful that Jimmy Butler has fallen this low. Him and Paul can talk about what it would be like to be teammates in Miami.
Team Giannis selects: Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat
Adams: So that's who I wanted to take. And Butler would 100% be on the floor in the final two minutes if this game is closer.
At some point I need more than two bigs, so I'll scoop up your boy Bam Adebayo. He would get too cozy chumming it up about Miami with CP and Jimmy anyways.
Team LeBron selects: Rudy Gobert, Utah Jazz
Rafferty: Yeah ... you read my next move perfectly.
Because I appreciate defence, Team LeBron welcomes Rudy Gobert to the roster. I'm hoping to roll him out with Embiid and Davis at some point.
Team Giannis selects: Donovan Mitchell, Utah Jazz
Adams: You know what I appreciate?
Buckets.
You know what the All-Star Game is all about?
Buckets.
Donovan Mitchell, welcome to the squad. I have no idea how everyone is going to share the rock but I don't care.
Team LeBron selects: Kyle Lowry, Toronto Raptors
Rafferty: It's unfortunate that you're not going to have a Raptor on your roster considering Nick Nurse is coaching Team Giannis, but that's the way this has worked out.
Kyle Lowry joins Lillard and Paul as Team LeBron's point guards.
Team Giannis selects: Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics
Adams: You don't need championship DNA to compete in the All-Star Game. And besides, Nurse is ruthless. Nobody knows the weaknesses of Siakam and Lowry like their own coach so I view it as a positive.
I'll take by far the best two-way player left on the board.
Jayson Tatum, welcome to the squad, where you're probably playing power forward.
Team LeBron: Brandon Ingram, New Orleans Pelicans
Rafferty: Brandon Ingram it is. We'll happily take an efficient 25.1 points per game off the bench.
Team Giannis selects: Russell Westbrook, Houston Rockets
Adams: There's not a more on-brand player in NBA history to fill out this squad than Russell Westbrook.
Give me Mr. Usage, himself.
Team LeBron: Domantas Sabonis, Indiana Pacers
Rafferty: Micah might not appreciate your ability to get a double-double in your sleep, but I do, Sabonis.
Final rosters
| Team LeBron | Team Giannis |
| F - LeBron James | G - Trae Young |
| F - Kawhi Leonard | G - Kemba Walker |
| F - Pascal Siakam | G - James Harden |
| F - Anthony Davis | G - Luka Doncic |
| C - Joel Embiid | F - Giannis Antetokounmpo |
| Team LeBron | Team Giannis |
| G - Damian Lillard | G - Ben Simmons |
| G - Chris Paul | G - Russell Westbrook |
| G - Kyle Lowry | G - Donovan Mitchell |
| F - Brandon Ingram | F - Jayson Tatum |
| F - Jimmy Butler | F - Khris Middleton |
| F - Domantas Sabonis | F - Bam Adebayo |
| C - Rudy Gobert | C - Nikola Jokic |
2K20 simulation
Team LeBron leaders
| Player | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG | 3PT | FT |
| LeBron James | 32 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 12-14 | 3-5 | 5-7 |
| Joel Embiid | 23 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7-15 | 5-5 | 4-4 |
| Kawhi Leonard | 18 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 6-12 | 2-5 | 4-5 |
| Anthony Davis | 15 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7-10 | 1-1 | 0-0 |
| Damian Lillard | 14 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5-12 | 2-7 | 2-2 |
| Chris Paul | 9 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1-4 | 0-2 | 7-7 |
| Pascal Siakam | 7 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 2-4 | 1-2 | 2-2 |
| Jimmy Butler | 4 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2-5 | 0-1 | 0-0 |
Team Giannis leaders
| Player | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG | 3PT | FT |
| Kemba Walker | 23 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 7-13 | 4-8 | 5-7 |
| Luka Doncic | 17 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 6-10 | 0-1 | 5-5 |
| Trae Young | 14 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 5-12 | 3-7 | 1-2 |
| Khris Middleton | 13 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4-10 | 2-4 | 3-3 |
| James Harden | 12 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0-5 | 0-2 | 12-12 |
| Nikola Jokic | 12 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 4-7 | 1-2 | 3-3 |
| Ben Simmons | 12 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 6-10 | 0-0 | 0-1 |
| Giannis Antetokounmpo | 6 | 16 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3-13 | 1-6 | 0-4 |
The views expressed here do not represent those of the NBA or its clubs.
