2022 NBA All-Star Weekend: New contest formats, 75th anniversary team, rosters plus injury replacements, Elam ending, and more

2022 NBA All-Star Weekend is upon us!

The festivities are set to begin in Cleveland on Saturday, Feb. 19 with a new format for the Rising Stars to get the weekend underway. From there, All-Star Saturday Night will play home to all of our favorite annual events like the Skills Challenge, 3-Point Contest and Slam Dunk Contest.

The weekend will wrap up on Monday, Feb. 21 with the 71st NBA All-Star Game, with a special halftime tribute to the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team.

From start to finish, we have you covered with everything you need to know about 2022 NBA All-Star Weekend.

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All events listed in chronological order.

All-Star Weekend host city: Cleveland, Ohio

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For the third time in NBA history, Cleveland will host All-Star Weekend. Cleveland played host to All-Star Weekend festivities in both 1981 and 1997.

This year, All-Star Weekend will take place at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in downtown Cleveland.

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Young stars Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen will represent the host city Cavaliers in the 2022 NBA All-Star Game.

New Rising Stars format

The Rising Stars Challenge will now consist of four seven-player teams competing in a three-game, single-elimination mini-tournament. Each game will be played to a final target score.

The teams were comprised of a pool of 28 players, consisting of 12 rookies, 12 sophomores and four members of the G League Ignite development team.

Teams were drafted by four members of the NBA's 75th Anniversary team.

You can find the three-game, single-elimination tournament bracket below.

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— NBA (@NBA) January 25, 2022

The first-round games will be played to a final target score of 50. The championship round will be played to a final target score of 25. Games will be 5-on-5 and scoring will go by 2s and 3s.

The competition consists of a "Race to 75" points, in honor of the NBA's landmark 75th anniversary season.

Rising Stars rosters

The four Rising Stars teams will be coached by members of the NBA's 75th Anniversary team – Rick Barry, Gary Payton, Isiah Thomas and James Worthy.

You can watch the Rising Stars Challenge on Saturday, Feb. 19 at 12 p.m. AEST.

*Kuminga will serve as Pacers guard Chris Duarte's injury replacement.

**Hyland will serve as Kings guard Davion Mitchell's injury replacement.

New Skills Challenge format

The Skills Challenge will have a new look this year, with three teams of three players competing in a four-round competition that tests shooting, passing and dribbling ability. You can find the three teams below.

The Skills Challenge will be the first event of All-Star's second day, which tips off at 11 a.m. AEST.

3-Point Contest

Eight players will compete in the 3-Point Contest, which will be the second event of All-Star's second day.

Slam Dunk Contest

Four players will face off in the Slam Dunk Contest, which will be the third and final event of All-Star's competitions.

Sunday's festivities tip off at 11 a.m. AEST.

2022 NBA All-Star Game rosters

The rosters for the 2022 NBA All-Star Game were drafted by team captains, LeBron James and Kevin Durant.

The 71st NBA All-Star Game will tip off on Monday, Feb. 21 at 11 a.m. AEST.

*Jarrett Allen is James Harden's injury replacement.

*Dejounte Murray is Draymond Green's injury replacement. LaMelo Ball is Kevin Durant's injury replacement.

You can find the full All-Star Draft order here.

NBA 75th Anniversary Team celebration

The NBA will celebrate the 75th Anniversary Team in a special halftime ceremony during the 2022 NBA All-Star Game.

MORE: Ranking the top 75 peaks in NBA history

GRAMMY Award winner and Cleveland Cavaliers part-owner Usher, Academy Award and Emmy Award winner Spike Lee, GRAMMY and Emmy Award winner Tiffany Haddish and Emmy Award nominee Anthony Anderson will serve as narrators and take fans on a journey through the league’s first 75 years, recognizing the players who have shined the brightest and highlighting the themes that have served as the cornerstones of the NBA since its founding: competition, culture and inclusion.

GRAMMY Award winners Earth, Wind & Fire will perform their hit “Shining Star” as the halftime finale.

Members of the NBA 75th Anniversary team from nearly every decade of the league’s existence will be in the arena for the ceremony honoring the NBA’s diamond anniversary.

What is an Elam Ending?

In 2020, the NBA switched the All-Star Game format to try and up the level of competition.

They adopted the Elam Ending, which is a format where teams try and reach a pre-determined score in order to win the game.

When the NBA inherited the rule in 2020, it elected to honor the passing of Kobe Bryant by making the target score 24 more points than the total for the team that was leading after three quarters of play.

Using a real-life example to help make this more easily understood: In 2020, Team Giannis was leading Team LeBron 133-124 at the end of the third quarter. That made 157 points the target score to win the game (133 plus 24, in honor of Kobe).

The Kobe Bryant Trophy

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On Feb. 15, 2020, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver announced that the NBA All-Star Game MVP Award would be permanently named in Bryant's honor, beginning in the 2020 NBA All-Star Game, which took place on Feb. 16, 2020, three weeks to the date of Bryant's death.

Fittingly, Bryant's name is etched throughout NBA All-Star record books.

MORE: Full details on the new Kobe Bryant NBA All-Star MVP Trophy

Over the course of his 20-year NBA career, Bryant was named to 18 All-Star Games, with his first selection coming in 1998, his second NBA season. At 19 years old, Bryant became the youngest player to appear in an NBA All-Star Game, a record that stands to this day.

Bryant was named NBA All-Star Game MVP in 2002, 2007, 2009 and 2011, tying him with Bob Pettit for most NBA All-Star Game MVP Awards with four.

With records as the youngest-ever All-Star and the most decorated All-Star, Bryant's name is synonymous with excellence at the All-Star Game.

The 2022 NBA All-Star Game marks the first year in which "The Kobe Bryant Trophy" will be awarded to the All-Star Game MVP.