Knicks All-Stars Guaranteed to Face Off

New York Knicks fans will officially have to big a side come Sunday night.

Prior to the Knicks' Tuesday night tilt with the Indiana Pacers, the NBA and TNT unveiled the bracket for Sunday's All-Star Game in San Francisco (8 p.m. ET, TNT): Towns' team will do battle with Brunson's in the first of two rounds, as the metropolitan duo will respectively play for teams repped by TNT personalities Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith.

To combat complaints about the lack of a competitive nature, the NBA All-Star Game has moved to a four-team tournament format, one previously seen in the National Hockey League's equivalent. Brunson partook in last season's brief return to a conference-vs.-conference format, which saw the East prevail by a defensively challenged 211-186 final.

Karl-Anthony Towns, Jalen Brunson — Jan 10, 2025; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) and guards Jalen Brunson (11) and Miles McBride (2) watch from the bench during the fourth quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Towns is playing for "Chuck's Global Stars," as the center of Dominican descent is part of a roster that features several overseas standouts such as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City), Nikola Jokic (Denver), Alperen Sengun (Houston), and Victor Wembanyama (San Antonio). Brunson, on the other, hand is part of a group of presumed All-Star Game hand-picked by Smith, as "Kenny's Young Stars" also feature Cade Cunningham (Detroit), Anthony Edwards (Minnesota), and Darius Garland (Cleveland).

The battle between Chuck and "The Jet" will serve as the first of three games in Sunday's main event, followed by another semifinal between teams coached by fellow TNT reps Candace Parker and Shaquille O'Neal. "Shaq's OGs" feature established All-Star talents such as Stephen Curry (Golden State), Kevin Durant (Phoenix), and LeBron James (LA Lakers) while Parker will lead the winning team from Friday's Rising Stars competition (9 p.m. ET, TNT) into battle. Each of the three games will be played to a target score of 40.

Brunson and Towns will collaborate one more time before moving onto San Francisco, as the Knicks (35-18) face the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG).

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