The 2016 NBA All-Star Celebrity Game MVP is BACK. Win Butler, the lead singer of Arcade Fire, is returning for the 2017 NBA All-Star Celebrity Game despite a political statement made during his MVP acceptance speech. But for the 2017 NBA All-Star Weekend in New Orleans, it looks like we have a pretty stacked game ahead of us.
LOL
Win Butler earns MVP honors and starts talking politics!#DewCelebGame pic.twitter.com/RbBAGirQOR
— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) February 13, 2016
Joining Butler in the game will be a pair of NBA owners. Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, and Marc Lasry, owner of the Milwaukee Bucks, will be on opposing teams. But the basketball roots don’t stop there.
But the list of real ballers on this list is interesting. On team Smith, they have Baron Davis and WNBA MVP Candace Parker, but they also have Master P and Romeo Miller. P spent time in the NBA and Romeo played college hoops at USC. For Team Hill, they have their own WNBA star on the squad in Lindsay Whalen along with Jason ‘White Chocolate’ Williams, former NBA player and current NBA player impersonator Brandon Armstrong along with Basketball Hall of Famer and Brazilian hoops legend Oscar Schmidt.
ESPN‘s new lead 6 PM SportsCenter duo of Michael Smith and Jemele Hill are set to coach the teams. Michael Smith will be joined by Golden State Warriors All-Star Draymond Green and TV personality Rocsi Diaz as assistant coaches. Jemele Hill will be assisted by Toronto Raptors All-Star Kyle Lowry and rapper Fat Joe.
The official full rosters are below.
Team Smith (West): Miles Brown (actor), Tom Cavanagh (actor), Mark Cuban (Dallas Mavericks Owner), Baron Davis (NBA Legend), Andy Grammer (recording artist) Jiang Jinfu (actor, model), Anthony Mackie (actor), Romeo Miller (rapper), Hasan Minhaj (actor, comedian), Master P (rapper), Candace Parker (WNBA Star), Aaron Sanchez (celebrity chef)
Team Hill (East): Brandon Armstrong (former NBA player and social media star), Win Butler (Lead Singer, Arcade Fire), Nick Cannon (actor), Rachel DeMita (NBA2K TV personality), Ansel Elgort (actor, recording artist), Marc Lasry (Milwaukee Bucks Owner), Caleb McLaughlin (actor), Peter Rosenberg (media personality), Oscar Schmidt (International Basketball Legend), Lindsay Whalen (WNBA star), Jason Williams (NBA Legend), Kris Wu (recording artist).
My early pick to win? Team Hill. The reigning MVP will be on the team, Brandon Armstrong can play the role of just about any NBA player as we’ve seen in the past, Nick Cannon can hoop a little bit, and Rachel DeMita has shown on her NBA 2kTV program that she has some skills. Plus, the dark horse in this might be the trio of real ballers in Oscar Schmidt, Jason Williams, and Lindsay Whalen.
Some obvious omissions? President Barack Obama leads the list followed by his former secretary of education and former All-Star Celebrity game MVP Arne Duncan. Also, notable MVPs missing include Justin Bieber, Michael Rappaport, and four-time All-Star Celebrity Game MVP Kevin Hart. But I have a feeling Hart will find his way into the game somehow.
The game tips at 7 E.T., Friday, Feb. 17th on ESPN.
