Damian Lillard scored 39 points to earn game MVP honours as the Eastern Conference won the highest-scoring All-Star Game in NBA history with a resounding 211-186 victory over the Western Conference in Indianapolis on Sunday.
The East became the first team to surpass the 200-point mark in a defence-deficient event that also shattered the previous All-Star Game high of 374 combined points, set by the West in their 192-182 win over the East in New Orleans in 2017. The West also held the previous team high for points when they recorded 196 in the 2016 edition held in Toronto.
One night after successfully defending his title in the 3-point contest during Saturday's skills competition, Lillard teamed with Indiana Pacers home-town hero Tyrese Haliburton for a prolific display from beyond the arc. The duo combined for 21 of the East's 42 3-pointers, also an All-Star Game record for one team.
Lillard, a seven-time All-Star with the Portland Trail Blazers who was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks during the offseason, finished 11 of 23 from 3-point range and Halliburton went 10 for 14.
Jaylen Brown of the Boston Celtics chipped in 36 points and eight rebounds to help the East overcome a dominant performance from the West's Karl-Anthony Towns. The Minnesota Timberwolves forward amassed 50 points to become the fourth player to reach that mark in an All-Star Game, joining Boston's Jayson Tatum (55 in 2023), then-New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (52 in 2017) and Golden State Warriors icon Stephen Curry (50 in 2022).
LeBron James, participating in his record 20th All-Star Game, played just 14 minutes while scoring eight points.
The East never trailed after Lillard knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers in the first quarter that gave his team a 35-29 advantage, while Haliburton hit five triples in the opening period to help the East take a 53-47 lead into the second quarter.
Lillard scored 13 more points in the second quarter as the East extended the margin to 104-89 at half-time, with the 193 combined first-half points also the most in a single All-Star Game.
Towns had just 19 points through three quarters before putting up an incredible 31 while playing the entire fourth, though the game was out of hand by that point as the East took a commanding 160-136 lead into the final period.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was the West's lone other player with more than 18 points, as the Oklahoma City Thunder guard finished with 31 on 12-of-16 shooting.
Kerr demands improvements from Team USA as Olympic opener looms
United States coach Steve Kerr wants to see higher levels of intensity from his team as their Olympics campaign approaches.
Kerr was unhappy with the lacklustre displays from his side in their warm-ups against Germany and South Sudan.
Germany led 71-68 at the end of the third quarter before LeBron James conjured up 11 points in the final four minutes to give the USA a 92-88 win, while South Sudan were 20 seconds away from pulling off one of the biggest shocks in basketball history, before eventually falling to a 101-100 loss.
The USA face a dangerous Serbia side featuring reigning NBA MVP Nikola Jokic on Sunday, and Kerr is adamant that improvements are required if they are to win a fifth consecutive Olympic gold medal.
He said: "It's got to be 40 minutes of force and attention and focus, and we can't let teams outplay us effort and energy-wise like we did the other night against Germany, like we did against South Sudan.
“We have another level. I think we have another two levels that we can get to, but it's a collaboration, always.
"We can show them, 'Let's do this, let's do that. Let's learn personnel.'
"We got to know the shooters, know the non-shooters, all that stuff. So that's where we can help them. Where they can help themselves is just effort and energy play after play, after play. This is different."
Kerr is a four-time NBA champion as a coach, and was part of the triumphant Olympics team in Tokyo in 2021, but the Golden State Warriors boss knows the experience of the Games will only be enhanced if the USA were to come out on top again.
"This should be one of the great experiences of our lives. But the best way to make it an incredible experience is to win a gold medal," he said.
After facing Serbia, the USA will once again go up against South Sudan, this time in a competitive format, before ending the group stage with a match against Puerto Rico.
Durant warns Team USA 'everybody is a contender' in Olympic basketball tournament
Kevin Durant has warned Team USA they will not have an easy ride through the basketball tournament at the Paris Olympic Games, declaring: "Everybody is a contender".
The United States will go in search of a fifth straight men's basketball gold in the French capital, where they open their Group C campaign against Serbia on Sunday.
After that meeting with Nikola Jokic and company, the star-studded USA team featuring Durant, LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Joel Embiid and a host of other NBA stars take on South Sudan and Puerto Rico.
With Steve Kerr having so much talent at his disposal, the roster has been compared to that of the 1992 'Dream Team', who took gold in Barcelona behind the efforts of Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Scottie Pippen and other great names.
However, at a press conference ahead of Team USA's 2024 opener, Curry reminded reporters that the class of 1992 only faced nine other active NBA players.
Durant is expecting a much tougher assignment this year, responding to Curry by saying: "Everybody is a contender. Everyone is here for a reason.
"We're playing against 65 or 64 NBA players in Paris. So you know they're the best in the world."
Asked to identify the main players to watch from other nations, the Phoenix Suns forward said: "Giannis [Antetokounmpo] or Jokic."
While Durant adopted a cautious tone, Golden State Warriors star Curry was more bullish regarding the USA's gold medal hopes.
Quizzed on who he was most excited about facing, Curry simply said: "Whoever's in the gold medal game."
Knicks, head coach Thibodeau agree to three-year contract extension
The New York Knicks and head coach Tom Thibodeau have agreed to a three-year contract extension through the 2027-28 season.
New York went 50-32 last season to earn the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference before losing to the Indiana Pacers in the semi-finals of the play-offs.
The Knicks were also ousted in the East semis in 2022-23 and reached the play-offs during Thibodeau’s first season in 2021-22, when he won his second NBA Coach of the Year award.
Prior to 2021-22, New York’s previous post-season appearance came in 2013.
The Knicks have gone 175-143 over the last four seasons under Thibodeau, who earned his first NBA Coach of the Year award in 2011 as a rookie head coach with the Chicago Bulls.
The 66-year-old Thibodeau owns a 527-389 record in 12 seasons as a head coach with Chicago, the Minnesota Timberwolves and New York.
His teams have gone 38-47 in the post-season, and Thibodeau’s only appearance in the conference finals came in his rookie head coach season.
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