With their victory at the2020 NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, Team LeBron has won a total of $400,000 for charity.
Team LeBron won the first quarter 53-41, but Team Giannis took the second quarter 51-30 and subsequently the first half with a total of 92-83. Each team won $100,000 for their charities:Chicago Scholars(Team LeBron) andAfter School Matters(Team Giannis).
Then in the third quarter, the two teams tied 41-41, forcing the $100,000 of that quarter to carry over into the fourth. In the nail-biting final quarter, which was full of fouls, Lakers star Anthony Davis’ free throw helped Team LeBron reach the target score of 157 to win the game and $200,000 additional prize for Chicago Scholars.
“You could definitely feel his presence just from the start,” James told reporters after the game regarding Kobe Bryant. “From every moment from the fans chanting his name till you seen the numbers. Every time you saw Giannis’ team run on the floor, you saw the 2-4. So he was definitely here.”
Regarding the pregame Kobe tributes and all the Mamba-inspired dedications, James said “anything else would be uncivilized.”
The star added, “I think it’s been amazing, and I’m happy to be a part of it this weekend. Obviously, me being a Los Angeles Laker myself, it’s going to be a part of me for the rest of my life and our franchise, and any player to ever wear purple and gold until the end of basketball, which is never. So it’s a beautiful time. It’s a beautiful day. And his presence was felt here in Chicago.”
Team LeBron’s starters included Anthony Davis (Lakers), Kawhi Leonard (Los Angeles Clippers), Luka Doncic (Dallas Mavericks) and James Harden (Houston Rockets).
Team Giannis featured Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers), Pascal Siakam (Toronto Raptors), Kemba Walker (Boston Celtics), Trae Young (Atlanta Hawks).
This year marks the second All-Star season that James and Antetokounmpo are competing as captains — last year James winning 178-164.
Each quarter played out as a sort of mini-game, with the score resetting back to 0-0 at the start of the second and third quarters. The team with the most points in each quarter — again, played out like its own game with the score resetting to zero — won $100,000 for its chosen charity.
The winning team won another $200,000 for its charity.
But there were also other tributes to Bryant on the uniforms of the players.
All members of Team LeBron wore No. 2 on their jerseys, in memory of Gianna, who wore the number as a member of the Mamba Sports Academy. In turn, Team Giannis players wore No. 24 in honor of Bryant, who wore the number in the latter half of his career.
To pay tribute to the other victims, both teams wore patches with nine stars to represent all who were lost in the crash, includingJohn Altobelli,Keri Altobelli,Alyssa Altobelli,Sarah Chester, Payton Chester,Christina Mauserand pilotAra Zobayan.
If you would like to help the families of the victims of the crash, consider donating to theMamba on Three Fund. Contributions to theMamba & Mambacita Sports Foundationwill help support youth sports.
source: people.com
