WASHINGTON (AFP) — National Basketball Association All-Stars aren’t sure who will be the new face of the league once LeBron James is gone, but they are confident the NBA’s future is in good hands.
Several top stars spoke Saturday on the eve of the 73rd NBA All-Star Game at Indianapolis, where 20-time All-Star selection James, the NBA all-time scoring leader, represents the Los Angeles Lakers at age 39.
James, a four-time NBA Most Valuable Player and four-time NBA champion, has been the top star in an older generation of talent that includes Golden State’s Stephen Curry and Phoenix’s Kevin Durant.
“It will be an amazing league regardless,” said Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. “He has done amazing things for this league and for the game of basketball. You don’t want to take him for granted, obviously. But when he’s gone, it will still be great.”
Younger stars are already having an impact on the league with two-time NBA Most Valuable Players Nikola Jokic of Denver and Giannis Antetokounmpo of Milwaukee winning titles and a host of others chasing crowns, including Dallas guard Luka Doncic, Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards, Phoenix’s Devin Booker, Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid and Gilgeous-Alexander among them.
“There’s a lot of guys to pick from in this group of 24 that are here,” Curry said. “You see Luka, Ant, Shai, guys that are really coming into their prime… but have a perspective of what that means within the on-court/off-court opportunities.
“The league is in pretty good hands when it comes to young talent that I think gets it and understands the magnitude of the platform we all have and will respect it as they come into their own.”
Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton expects players who lead their teams to success will spearhead the next generation.
“We got a lot of different guys that it could be,” he said. “The league is in great hands. It’s the most talent that has even been in this league.
“To be the face of the league, winning has to come with that. Whatever young guy takes that charge and is winning moving forward, that’s probably who it will be.”
