The 2021 NBA season has been a great watch so far for fans who bet on basketball as the teams have battled themselves to a standstill in the competition.
In the Eastern Conference of the NBA, the Philadelphia 76ers are in the lead with a 22-12 record this season, occupying the remaining playoff spots are the Brooklyn Nets, Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks, Miami Heat, Boston Celtics, Toronto Raptors and Charlotte Hornets.
These teams currently occupy the top 8 spots in the Eastern Conference. In the Western Conference, Utah Jazz have been the best side in the league this season and are on top of the pile with a 27-7 record ahead of defending champions, Los Angeles Lakers in second place with their 24-11 record due to their losing 4 of their past 6 matches in the division.
In the remaining playoff spots, we have the Los Angeles Clippers, Phoenix Suns, San Antonio Spurs, Portland Trail Blazers, Denver Nuggets, and the Golden State Warriors.
At the end of the season, the 16 teams that qualify from both conferences will embark on the off-season playoffs to determine who wins the championship.
In spite of complaints from various quarters, the NBA’s annual East versus West All-star game is set to hold on the 4th of March 2021 in Atlanta, and the teams for each side have been announced.
The West team is to be captained by Lakers’ 17-time all star, LeBron James, and his starting teammates include Golden State Warriors’ Steph Curry, Dallas Mavericks’ Luka Doncic, Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic and Kawhi Leonard of the Los Angeles Clippers.
The team’s reserves bench is equally stacked with talent as Paul George of the Los Angeles Clippers, Rudy Gobert of Utah Jazz, Portland Trail Blazers’ Damian Lillard, Utah Jazz’s Donovan Mitchell, Zion Williamson of the New Orleans Pelicans and Chris Paul of the Phoenix Suns.
Phoenix Suns’ Devin Booker was called up as a replacement for the injured Los Angeles Lakers player, Anthony Davis. Utah Jazz coach, Quin Snyder will be in charge of the team.
The East team is set to be captained by Brooklyn Nets’ Kevin Durant who misses out due to injury and has been replaced by Boston Celtics’ Jayson Tatum. Durant was still responsible for picking the team and may even be present at the game in Atlanta.
The other starters include Bradley Beal of the Washington Wizards, Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers, Milwaukee Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Brooklyn Nets’ Kyrie Irving.
Their reserves include Boston Celtics’ Jaylen Brown, Brooklyn Nets’ James Harden, Zach LaVine of the Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks’ Julius Randle, Indiana Pacers’ Domantas Sabonis, Philadelphia 76ers’ Ben Simmons, and Nikola Vucevic of the Orlando Magic.
The East team will be coached by Philadelphia 76ers coach, Doc Rivers.
This year’s all-star designation has seen LeBron James receive his 17th all-star call-up, putting him in third on the all-time list behind only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Kobe Bryant, who had 19 and 18 appearances, respectively.
There were also first time call-ups for four NBA stars, including Jaylen Brown, Julius Randle, Zach LaVine and Zion Williamson.
