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Victor Wembanyama, Zaccharie Risacher, Alex Sarr, Bilal Coulibaly, and Tristan da Silva have been named among the rising talents for the upcoming All-Star Weekend’s updated Rising Stars games.
According to the official announcement: “Today, the NBA revealed the 28 athletes chosen to participate in the 2025 Castrol Rising Stars event, slated for Friday, February 14, at Chase Center in San Francisco, as part of the NBA All-Star festivities for 2025.
This yearly event highlights top young players and includes a mini-tournament featuring four teams across three games, set to be broadcast at 9 p.m. ET on TNT. The team crowned as Castrol Rising Stars champion will earn a spot in the 2025 NBA All-Star Game, which takes place on Sunday, February 16, at 8 p.m. ET, also on TNT.
The roster for the Castrol Rising Stars consists of 10 NBA rookies, 11 second-year players from the NBA, and seven athletes from the NBA G League. The 21 NBA players have been selected by assistant coaches and will be divided into three teams of seven, while the seven G League players, chosen by the league office, will form the fourth team.
In a new twist for 2025, the triumphant Rising Stars team will compete in a mini-tournament during the All-Star Game on Sunday, February 16, facing off against the NBA All-Stars. Candace Parker, an analyst for TNT and a WNBA icon, will take on the role of honorary general manager for the reigning Rising Stars team, dubbed Team Candace.
The Rising Stars Draft is scheduled for Tuesday, February 4, at 4 p.m. ET, and will be streamed on the NBA App and via social media platforms @NBA. The honorary head coaches, who will oversee the drafting of the three NBA teams, will be announced later.
The player pool is as follows:
**2025 Castrol Rising Stars Player Pool**
**NBA Rookies:**
– Bub Carrington (Guard | Washington Wizards)
– Stephon Castle (Guard | San Antonio Spurs)
– Tristan da Silva (Frontcourt | Orlando Magic)
– Zach Edey (Frontcourt | Memphis Grizzlies)
– Dalton Knecht (Guard | Los Angeles Lakers)
– Jared McCain (Guard | Philadelphia 76ers)
– Yves Missi (Frontcourt | New Orleans Pelicans)
– Zaccharie Risacher (Frontcourt | Atlanta Hawks)
– Alex Sarr (Frontcourt | Washington Wizards)
– Jaylen Wells (Guard | Memphis Grizzlies)
**NBA Sophomores:**
– Bilal Coulibaly (Guard | Washington Wizards)
– Gradey Dick (Guard | Toronto Raptors)
– Keyonte George (Guard | Utah Jazz)
– Scoot Henderson (Guard | Portland Trail Blazers)
– Trayce Jackson-Davis (Frontcourt | Golden State Warriors)
– Jaime Jaquez Jr. (Frontcourt | Miami Heat)
– Dereck Lively II (Frontcourt | Dallas Mavericks)
– Brandon Miller (Guard | Charlotte Hornets)
– Amen Thompson (Guard | Houston Rockets)
– Cason Wallace (Guard | Oklahoma City Thunder)
– Victor Wembanyama (Frontcourt | San Antonio Spurs)
**NBA G League Players:**
– JD Davison (Guard | Maine Celtics)
– Mac McClung (Guard | Osceola Magic)
– Bryce McGowens (Frontcourt | Rip City Remix)
– Leonard Miller (Frontcourt | Iowa Wolves)
– Dink Pate (Guard | Mexico City Capitanes)
– Reed Sheppard (Guard | Rio Grande Valley Vipers)
– Pat Spencer (Guard | Santa Cruz Warriors)
In the Castrol Rising Stars mini-tournament, Team A will compete against Team B in the first semifinal (Game 1), while Team C will face Team D in the second semifinal (Game 2). The two winning teams will then advance to the championship match (Game 3).
In the semifinals, the first team to reach or exceed 40 points will be declared the victor. For the championship, the winning team will be the first to achieve at least 25 points.
To choose the NBA players for Castrol Rising Stars, each NBA team provided one vote from their coaching staff. Each staff had the opportunity to nominate four frontcourt players, four guards, and two additional players regardless of position, prioritized by preference, for both rookies and sophomores. Coaches were prohibited from voting for players on their own team.
The NBA participants were determined based on the total points accumulated from these votes, with points allocated according to each player’s ranking. The total pool ultimately contained one more sophomore than rookie due to point totals.
If an athlete is selected for both the NBA All-Star Game and the Castrol Rising Stars, they will only participate on one of the three NBA All-Star teams on Sunday, February 16.
Assistant coaches from the NBA All-Star Game coaching staffs of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Oklahoma City Thunder will join the honorary head coaches in leading the Castrol Rising Stars teams.
