The 67th edition of the NBA All Star game was held at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on February 27, 2018. Although it is home of the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers, teams Stephen and LeBron went head to head for the win while the audience cheered their respective players. Coaches Mike D´Antoni and Dwane Casey eagerly watched the game as it unfolded as well. Many celebrities were of attendance that night like Beyonce, Rihanna, DJ Khaled, Jimmy Kimmel, Snoop Dogg, and Justin Bieber-just to name a few.

The most notable or jaw-dropping moment of the much anticipated game however was definitely the national anthem performance by singer Fergie. Her performance received criticism on most social media platforms and showed celebrities like Jimmy Kimmel seemingly laughing alongside other basketball players.

Upon seeing such negative remarks regarding her singing style she told TMZ, ´”I’ve always been honoured and proud to perform the national anthem and last night I wanted to try something special for the NBA. I’m a risk taker artistically, but clearly this rendition didn’t strike the intended tone.”

The halftime show on the other hand was filled with various performances from comedian Kevin Hart, singer Pharrell Williams, and hip hop/rock band No One Ever Really Dies; more notably known as N.E.R.D.

The 2018 All Star game consisted of the following players:

Team James
Starters: Kevin Durant, DeMarcus Cousins (Pelicans), Anthony Davis (Pelicans) and Kyrie Irving (Celtics)
Reserves: LaMarcus Aldridge (Spurs), Bradley Beal (Wizards), Kevin Love (Cavaliers), Victor Oladipo (Pacers), Kristaps Porzingis (Knicks), John Wall (Wizards) and Russell Westbrook (Thunder)

Team Curry
Starters: Giannis Antetokounmpo (Bucks), DeMar DeRozan (Raptors), Joel Embiid (76ers) and James Harden (Rockets)
Reserves: Green, Thompson, Jimmy Butler (Timberwolves), Al Horford (Celtics), Damian Lillard (Trail Blazers), Kyle Lowry (Raptors) and Karl-Anthony Towns (Timberwolves)

The game itself was fairly competitive and the four quarters ended with Team LeBron James surpassing Team Stephen, who was previously in the lead. The final score was 148 (Team LeBron) and 145 (Team Stephen). LeBron James “scored 29 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists, ultimately winning his third NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player award.” (USA Today).

Despite the mixed emotions regarding the outcome of the much anticipated game, most of the team players, when asked, said the game was a lot of fun and it was unlike regular games.