WASHINGTON — Lakers big man Anthony Davis was named an All-Star for the second consecutive year on Thursday, the fourth time in his six seasons as a Laker that he has been selected for the midseason showcase.
It’s the 10th career All-Star selection for Davis (2014-21, ’23-24), who is averaging 25.7 points, 11.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 2.1 blocked shots and 1.3 steals in 34.3 minutes.
His selection marked the 53rd time in franchise history that multiple Lakers have been named NBA All-Stars in the same season.
LeBron James, 40, was named an NBA All-Star for a record-extending 21st consecutive time last week.
Davis wasn’t available for the Lakers’ road game against the Washington Wizards on Thursday.
He flew back to Los Angeles on Wednesday after an MRI confirmed an abdominal muscle strain, with the Lakers saying then that Davis will be re-evaluated in about one week.
Davis played just the first 10 minutes of the Lakers’ loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday before sitting out the rest of the game because of the abdominal injury.
“I don’t anticipate this being a long injury from everything we’ve been told,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said pregame. “Hopefully, he’s back at some point next week.”
Backup guard Gabe Vincent missed his third consecutive game because of a left knee ailment, with the team updating his injury from “left knee soreness” to “left knee contusion (bruise)” on Wednesday. Reserve forward Dorian Finney-Smith also missed Thursday’s game because of a bruised right shoulder, an injury he suffered against the 76ers.
The NBA is debuting a new format for the 2025 NBA All-Star Game, which will take place on Feb. 16 at the Chase Center in San Francisco.
The All-Star Game will feature a mini-tournament with four teams and three games. Two teams will meet in one semifinal (Game 1), and the remaining two teams will meet in the other semifinal (Game 2). The winning teams from Game 1 and Game 2 will advance to face each other in the championship (Game 3). Every game is being played to 40 points.
Each team will have eight players, with the 24 All-Stars being divided evenly into three teams. The rosters will be drafted by TNT’s “Inside the NBA” commentators and honorary team general managers Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Smith on Feb. 6. The fourth team will be the winning team from the championship game of the Rising Stars event, the annual showcase of the top first- and second-year NBA players and NBA G League standouts, that will be played on Feb. 14. TNT analyst and WNBA legend Candace Parker will be the honorary GM of the Rising Stars team.