Watch: Shaquille O'Neal and Michael Jordan playing a light-hearted 1v1 pre-game, in a throwback video from the 1996 NBA All-Star Game
The reserves for this year's NBA All-Star game will be announced Thursday night. The East's starters are Giannis Antetokounmpo, Joel Embiid, Trae Young, DeMar DeRozan and captain Kevin Durant. Meanwhile, captain LeBron James, Nikola Jokic, Andrew Wiggins, Stephen Curry and Ja Morant make up the starting lineup for the West.
7:00pm/et: Reserves Announcement
The 2022 #NBAAllStar reserves pool will be announced TONIGHT on TNT!
Any predictions?
🌟 7:00pm/et: Reserves Announcement
🌟 7:30pm/et: SUNS/HAWKS
🌟 10:00pm/et: LAKERS/CLIPPERS https://t.co/r0fK732kY7
As we look forward to the 71st All-Star Game on Feb. 20, let's throw it back to this warmup exchange between Shaquille O'Neal and Michael Jordan before the 1996 All-Star Game. The All-Stars went head-to-head before tipoff. O'Neal had on his Orlando Magic warmups, while Jordan was repping his Chicago Bulls.
🌟 MJ vs. SHAQ in 1996 🌟
2022 #NBAAllStar Game: 8:00pm/et February 20 on TNT. https://t.co/qXFYtIVT0d
While "Shaq Daddy" scored over MJ, Jordan failed to make a shot as he was closely guarded by O'Neal. The 7-foot-1 Hall of Famer made a clean shot over MJ close to the arc, with his entire windspan stretched. He also shook Jordan off his trail with some good body movement and made a clear shot, leaving Jordan biting the dust.
A retrospective of the 1996 All-Star Game
The 1996 All-Star Game was a high-scoring encounter between the Michael Jordan-led Eastern team and the Hakeem Olajuwon-led Western team. The other East starters were Shaquille O'Neal, Anfernee Hardaway, Grant Hill and Scottie Pippen. The rest of the West consisted of kidd" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-is-sponsored="false">Jason Kidd, Shawn Kemp, Clyde Drexler and Charles Barkley.
O'Neal led the East with 25 points in 28 minutes, while Jordan posted 20 points in 22 minutes. Hardaway registered 18 points, Hill had 14 points and Pippen eight. Coming off the bench, Terrell Brandon, Reggie Miller and Patrick Ewing recorded 11, eight and eight points respectively.
The West was led in scoring by two reserves, David Robinson and Gary Payton, with 18 points each. Kemp and Sean Elliot had 13 points each, while Drexler and Karl Malone were good for 11 points each. Starters Barkley, Kidd and Olajuwon had eight, seven and four points respectively.
The East won 129-118, with the West conceding the most points in the third quarter. The third quarter ushered in the largest differential of 19 points. The West's effort in the fourth wasn't enough, even though it posted 11 points more than the East.