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D-League All-Star Rosters Announced

February 5, 2008 - NBA G League (G League) News Release


NEW YORK, Feb. 5, 2008 - Thirteen players with NBA experience highlight the rosters for the second annual D-League All-Star Game presented by Spalding. The game will be held Feb. 16, on Center Court at NBA All-Star Jam Session presented by adidas and will tip off at 2 p.m. CST and will be shown live on NBA TV.

The two 10-man rosters were selected by a combination of fan balloting on D-LEAGUE.com and voting of the league's 14 head coaches. The Red Team will be the home team, while the Blue Team will be the visitors.

GATORADE Call-Ups Eddie Gill and Billy Thomas highlight the Red Team roster. Gill, selected first in the 2007 D-League draft by the Colorado 14ers, earned the season's first call-up Nov. 15, when he signed with the New Jersey Nets. He ranks among D-League leaders with 7.9 assists per game and 2.5 steals per game. Thomas, Gill's teammate in Colorado, earned a Dec. 24 call-up by the Nets and is among league leaders with 2.5 steals per game.

Reigning D-League Most Valuable Player Randy Livingston joins the Red Team, as does Dallas Mavericks assignee Nick Fazekas. Fazekas is averaging 18.9 points for the Tulsa 66ers while Livingston sits atop the league's leader board with 11.3 assists per game for the Idaho Stampede.

NBA-assigned players Morris Almond, Kyrylo Fesenko and Ian Mahinmi headline the Blue Team. Almond and Fesenko, teammates on the Utah Jazz and their D-League affiliate Utah Flash, have both seen multiple assignments during the season. Almond most recently joined the squad on Jan. 25, while Fesenko headed to Orem on Dec. 13. Mahinmi is in his second stint with the Austin Toros from the Spurs. Almond is second in the league with 26.4 points per game, while Fesenko is averaging 10.5 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. Mahinmi ranks among the league's best, shooting .639 (163-255).

Los Angeles D-Fenders center Jelani McCoy, Austin Toros guard Keith Langford and Fort Wayne Mad Ants guard Jeremy Richardson, all GATORADE Call-Ups this season, round out the Blue Team's roster. McCoy, who earned a call-up from the Denver Nuggets on Nov. 29, is averaging 2.2 blocks, ranking him among the league's best defenders, while Langford, who earned a call-up from the Spurs on Dec. 28, is averaging 24.1 points, ranking him among the league's top five scorers. Richardson has twice been called up this season, first by the Memphis Grizzlies on Dec. 20, and then by the San Antonio Spurs on Jan. 10. Richardson is averaging a league-high 28.2 points to go with 6.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.4 steals and 40.8 minutes in nine games for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants.

C.J. Watson, the 100th GATORADE Call-Up in league history, and member of the Golden State Warriors, was selected to the Blue Team by the fans and coaches. Since he is with the Warriors, he will be replaced on the D-League All-Star roster by NBA veteran and Bakersfield Jam guard Andre Barrett. Watson, who played 16 games for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers before earning a call-up from the Warriors on Jan. 8, had his NBA contract renewed through the end of the 2007-08 season.

Nine additional D-League standouts will compete in the All-Star Game, including three D-League Player of the Month and D-League.com Performer of the Week honorees. The Red Team will include Lance Allred (Idaho), Elton Brown (Colorado), Kaniel Dickens (Colorado), Dwayne Mitchell (Iowa), Kasib Powell (Sioux Falls), and Cory Violette (Idaho). The Blue Team will include Sean Banks (Los Angeles), Rod Benson (Dakota) and Carlos Powell (Dakota).

The Red Team will be coached by Idaho Stampede (22-5, .814) head coach Bryan Gates and his assistant Ray Lopes, while the Blue Team will be helmed by Los Angeles D-Fenders (18-8, .692) head coach Dan Panaggio and his assistant Chucky Brown. Both coaches were selected based on their teams having the highest winning percentage by Jan. 31. Prior to the game, Gates and Panaggio will choose starting lineups for their respective teams.

NBA Legends Rick Barry and Lenny Wilkens will serve as honorary captains and will share basketball knowledge with the 20 D-League All-Stars. As honorary captains, and former players and coaches, Barry and Wilkens will be on hand to offer their hardwood wisdom throughout the game.

About the D-League

The NBA Development League is the NBA's official minor league, and the first-ever basketball league with direct affiliations to NBA teams. Now in its seventh season the D-League's goals are to provide affordable, NBA-caliber entertainment to fans of its 14 teams, as well as continue to develop players, coaches, referees and front-office personnel for the NBA. As the single source for in-season player "call-ups" to the NBA, fans of the D-League enjoy the highest caliber of basketball played outside the NBA. In fact, former D-League players represented 10 percent of NBA players on 2007-08 opening day rosters, numbering 44 in total. In addition, the D-League has produced 25 percent of current NBA referees and 17 current NBA coaches, including head coach Sam Vincent with the Charlotte Bobcats. The D-League is an innovative and rapidly growing sports property that also serves as an experimental testing ground for new initiatives like the live web-streaming of all games available free to fans at d-league.com. The League also provides continuing education and professional development resources for its players, and is committed to serving its local communities through D-LEAGUE CARES and grassroots efforts.

About NBA All-Star Jam Session

NBA All-Star Jam Session presented by adidas provides fans the once in a lifetime experience of participating in the NBA All-Star excitement. Fans have the opportunity to meet and collect free autographs from NBA Players and Legends and see some of their favorite NBA players, mascots, dance teams, and celebrities as they hit Center Court in a variety of basketball competitions, including the Legends Shootout, Celebrity Slam Dunk contest, and Mascot Skills Challenge. Young fans can hang out at Kids Zone - with hoops and interactive activities that are the perfect size for kid's slam dunks, three-pointers and jump shots. Jam Session is non-stop basketball action where fans can shoot, slam, dribble and drive all day, compete against their friends in skills challenges, or get basketball tips from NBA Players and Legends.

Tickets for Jam Session start at $12 and are available at 800-4NBA-TIX, Ticketmaster.com, Ticketmaster Outlets, or the New Orleans Arena Box Office. Visit www.nba.com/jamsession for more information.

The complete 2008 Red and Blue Team All-Star squads are listed below.

RED TEAM ALL-STAR ROSTER

Pos. Player (Team) Ht. Wt. Birthdate College

G Eddie Gill (Colorado) 6-1 180 08/16/1978 Weber State

G Randy Livingston (Idaho) 6-4 210 04/02/1975 Louisiana State

G Dwayne Mitchell (Iowa) 6-5 210 08/24/1982 Louisiana-Lafayette

G Billy Thomas (Colorado) 6-5 220 12/23/1975 Kansas

F Kaniel Dickens (Colorado) 6-8 235 07/21/1978 Idaho

F Elton Brown (Colorado) 6-9 250 09/09/1983 Virginia

F Nick Fazekas (Tulsa) 6-11 211 06/17/1985 Nevada

F Kasib Powell (Sioux Falls) 6-7 215 03/18/1981 Texas Tech

F Cory Violette (Idaho) 6-9 255 03/13/1982 Gonzaga

C Lance Allred (Idaho) 6-11 250 02/02/1981 Weber State

Head Coach: Bryan Gates (Idaho)

Assistant Coach: Ray Lopes (Idaho)

Athletic Trainer: Kevin Taylor (Idaho)

Honorary Captain: Rick Barry

BLUE TEAM ALL-STAR ROSTER

Pos. Player (Team) Ht. Wt. Birthdate College

G Morris Almond (Utah) 6-6 225 02/02/1985 Rice

G Andre Barrett (Bakersfield) 5-10 173 02/21/1982 Seton Hall

G Keith Langford (Austin) 6-4 215 09/15/1983 Kansas

G CJ Watson (Rio Grande Valley) * 6-2 180 04/17/1984 Tennessee

F Sean Banks (Los Angeles) 6-8 210 01/20/1985 Memphis

F Rod Benson (Dakota) 6-10 225 10/10/1984 California

F Carlos Powell (Dakota) 6-7 220 08/29/1983 South Carolina

F Jeremy Richardson (Ft. Wayne) 6-7 190 02/11/1983 Delta State

C Kyrylo Fesenko (Utah) 7-1 288 12/24/1986 Ukraine

C Ian Mahinmi (Austin) 6-11 230 11/05/1986 France

C Jelani McCoy (Los Angeles) 6-10 245 12/06/1977 UCLA

Head Coach: Dan Panaggio (Los Angeles)

Assistant Coach: Chucky Brown (Los Angeles

Athletic Trainer: Marco Nunez (Los Angeles)

Honorary Captain: Lenny Wilkens

* Watson will be replaced by Andre Barrett due to his active status with the Golden State Warriors.

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