Long to compete in NBA D-League All-Star game

Morgan City High alum and former University of Louisiana at Lafayette standout Shawn Long will compete in this weekend’s NBA Development League All-Star Game presented by Kumho Tire Saturday at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans.
At the time of his selection earlier this month, Long had per-game averages of 20.6 points, 11.2 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.4 blocks. He ranked third in rebounds per game, 11th in scoring and 12th in blocks.
Long was one of two dozen NBA Development League players, including 15 with NBA experience, selected for the contest.
He is a member of the East team, which is coached by Raptors 905 Coach Jerry Stackhouse, a two-time NBA All-Star.
The game will be aired live on NBA TV at 1:30 p.m.
The 2017 NBA D-League All-Stars were selected by a combined vote of the league’s 22 head coaches and all players in the league on Jan. 29. Players were eligible to be selected if they competed in at least half of their teams’ games through that date. They must be on an active NBA D-League roster at the time of the All-Star Game to participate.
The East and West rosters include a combined six current NBA players, including five who have earned GATORADE Call-Ups to the NBA this year.
The East team features Yogi Ferrell (Long Island Nets/Dallas Mavericks), Ray McCallum (Grand Rapids Drive/Charlotte Hornets) and Chris McCullough (Long Island Nets/Brooklyn Nets). The West team is headlined by Johnny O’Bryant III (Northern Arizona Suns/Denver Nuggets), Briante Weber (Sioux Falls Skyforce/Golden State Warriors) and Okaro White (Sioux Falls Skyforce/Miami Heat).
An additional nine players with NBA experience have been selected to play in the 11th annual game: Anthony Brown (Erie BayHawks), Eric Moreland (Canton Charge) and Edy Tavares (Raptors 905) in the East, and Keith Benson (Sioux Falls Skyforce), Vander Blue (Los Angeles D-Fenders), Justin Harper (Los Angeles D-Fenders), Pierre Jackson (Texas Legends), Cory Jefferson (Austin Spurs) and JaKarr Sampson (Iowa Energy) in the West.
The East team, coached by two-time NBA All-Star and Raptors 905 head coach Jerry Stackhouse, is rounded out by Quinn Cook (Canton Charge), Marcus Georges-Hunt (Maine Red Claws), Jalen Jones (Maine Red Claws), Long (Delaware 87ers), Abdel Nader (Maine Red Claws) and Alex Poythress (Fort Wayne Mad Ants).
The West team also includes Dennis Clifford (Santa Cruz Warriors), Dakari Johnson (Oklahoma City Blue) and Josh Magette (Los Angeles D-Fenders). Los Angeles D-Fenders head coach Coby Karl, an NBA and NBA D-League veteran, will lead the West.
Six of the NBA D-League’s top 10 scorers were selected as All-Stars, with Cook (25.8 ppg), Blue (24.8 ppg) and Nader (22.5 ppg) ranking in the top five. Three of the league’s top five rebounders also will play: Moreland (11.7 rpg), Long (11.2 rpg) and Benson (10.7 rpg). Magette (9.5 apg) leads the league in assists.