The Duke basketball program had at least two former players selected to the NBA All-Star game in 2023 and 2024, but this year The Brotherhood had just one selection in Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics.
Tatum has been a consistent top 10 to 12 player in the NBA for almost his entire career, dating back to when Boston drafted him third overall in the 2017 NBA Draft.
This season, Tatum is sixth in the league in scoring at 26.8 points per game to go along with 8.8 rebounds, 5.7 assists, and 1.3 steals on 45.2% shooting from the field and 35.4% from three point range on 10.4 attempts from the perimeter a game.
Tatum was selected as an Eastern Conference All-Star starter along with Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks, Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns of the New York Knicks, and Donovan Mitchell of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Tatum's backcourt partner, Jaylen Brown, was selected as a reserve in the East.
"It means a lot," Tatum said following his selection. "All-Star is a hell of an accomplishment."
Tatum has continued to ring in the accolades throughout his storied first seven and a half seasons in the NBA. Most recently, he and the Celtics won the 2024 NBA Finals after beating the Dallas Mavericks in five games.
The 2024 Boston Celtics were one of the greatest offensive teams of all time by the numbers. That team scored 122.2 points per 100 possessions, which was both the best rate in the league last season but also the best rate in the history of the NBA. The Celtics' 80-21 record through the regular season and postseason was also the 13th-best record in NBA history.
The Celtics brought virtually all of their key pieces back from that team, and are now looking to repeat as NBA Champions in 2025, led by Tatum.
Duke has the 4th-most different players selected as NBA All-Stars of any college with 12, and Tatum is the program's 37th all-time selection.