NBA All-Star Game 2022: Grading every player on Team LeBron and Team Durant

LeBron James has never lost as team captain in the NBA All-Star Game. In the final moments in Cleveland, he made sure of it, rattling in a turnaround jumper at the right elbow to give Team LeBron the target score of 163 in a close victory over Team Durant.

But James had a fellow Akron-born superstar to thank for his fifth consecutive win in the league's annual midseason showcase.

Stephen Curry poured in a game-high 50 points — 48 of those coming off the 3-pointer — in a performance that earned him the Kobe Bryant NBA All-Star MVP award. Curry's 16 made 3s obliterated the previous All-Star Game record of nine set by Paul George in 2016, and the Golden State Warriors guard finished two points shy of Anthony Davis' All-Star record of 52.

In a game that saw 323 total points and 121 shots launched from beyond the arc, which stars shined brightest in Cleveland? We're grading every participant for Team LeBron and Team Durant.

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STARTERS

Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors Grade: A

Stats 50 PTS, 16-27 3FG, 5 REB, 2 BLK

Analysis We've never seen a shooting exhibition quite like Curry's to win MVP not far from his shared birthplace with LeBron (Akron, Ohio, while father Dell Curry was playing for the Cavaliers). Curry's 8 3s before halftime smashed the previous single-half high in All-Star play, and he claimed the overall record (which was nine by Paul George) early in the third.

By that point, it was clear Steph was on an all-time heater. He made a variety of difficult 3s, including a one-legged running effort, before missing a heat check from half court. Curry finished with 16 3s in 27 attempts, a record for any NBA game. Remarkably, no team had made 16 3s in an All-Star