Pictured from left: R& B singer Mary J. Blige, comedian and actress Tiffany Haddish, rapper Lil Wayne, and Civil Rights leader the Rev Jesse Jackson Sr. All of them and more were in Cleveland, Ohio the weekend of Feb 18-20 for an NBA All-Star Celebrity Game, slam dunk contest, and  the NBA All-Star Game that is set for  Sun, Feb. 20, 2022 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in downtown Cleveland (Editor's note: Click on the title of this story at latest news herein to view the full picture for this article)

CLEVELAND, Ohio-A star-studded weekend in Cleveland that included an NBA All- Star Celebrity Basketball Game, a slam dunk contest, and  performances at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse by musicians and rappers such as Mary J. Blige and Lil Wayne brought Oscar winners like Spike Lee, comedian and Tiffany Haddish, the Rev Jesse Jackson Sr, some of NBA Legends such as the likes of Kareem Abdul-Jabbarhael Jordon, and Julius Irving and other celebrities to the largely Black major American city. And led by NBA mega stars like like Lebron James, an Akron Ohio native and former player for the Cleveland Cavaliers who now plays with the Los Angeles Lakers, the festivities will conclude on Sunday as Cleveland will host the 2022 NBA All-Star Game at 8 pm at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, reports theathletic.com below. (Editor's note: Team LeBron won the game 163-160 pver Team Durrant, and Stephen Curry, who put up 50 points,  received the Kolbe Bryant Award for game MVP)

LeBron James and Kevin Durant, who were selected as NBA All-Star captains by fan voting results, took turns drafting from the pool of 22 players voted into the All-Star field Thursday night on TNT. Team LeBron selected Giannis Antetokounmpo with the first pick and James Harden with the last, hours after the latter was traded from the Brooklyn Nets to the Philadelphia 76ers.

Commissioner Adam Silver worked with then-NBPA president Chris Paul to revamp the All-Star game format in 2017, creating the NBA All-Star Draft, which was first implemented at the 2018 All-Star Game.

First, James and Durant selected from the eight All-Star starters, then from the 14 All-Star reserves. Team LeBron's starters will be James (Lakers), Antetokounmpo (Bucks), Stephen Curry (Warriors), DeMar DeRozan (Bulls), Nikola Jokić (Nuggets). The reserves will be Luka Dončić (Mavericks), Darius Garland (Cavs), Chris Paul (Suns), Jimmy Butler (Heat), Donovan Mitchell (Jazz), Fred VanVleet (Raptors), James Harden (76ers) (Editor's note: Jarrett Allen of the Cleveland Cavaliers gas since cen chosen by the NBA to replace the injured Harden for the NBA All-Star Game).

Durant will not play in this year's All-Star Game because of a knee injury, but selected Joel Embiid (76ers), Ja Morant (Grizzlies), Jayson Tatum (Celtics), and Trae Young (Hawks) and Andrew Wiggins (Warriors) as the starters for Team Durant. The reserves will be Devin Booker (Suns), Karl-Anthony Towns (Timberwolves), Zach LaVine (Bulls), Dejounte Murray (Spurs), Khris Middleton (Bucks), LaMelo Ball (Hornets) and Rudy Gobert (Jazz).

Draymond Green, who was named an All-Star reserve for the fourth time in his career, will not participate in the game due to his back injury and was not selected in the draft.

clevelandurbannews.com and www.kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com the most read Black digital newspaper and Black blog in Ohio and in the Midwest. Tel: (216) 659-0473. Email: editor@clevelandurbannews.com. We interviewed former president Barack Obama one-on-one when he was campaigning for president. As to the Obama interview, CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE AT CLEVELAND URBAN NEWS.COM, OHIO'S LEADER IN BLACK DIGITAL NEWS.