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NBA All-Star Celebrity Game Preview: It’s Dawn Staley and A’ja Wilson vs. the world!

Hall of Famer Dawn Staley will coach the Home Team featuring Las Vegas Ace forward A’ja Wilson, while three-time WNBA champion Sue Bird will coach the Away Team featuring Chicago Sky center Stefanie Dolson.

By Christine M. Hopkins

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NCAA Womens Basketball: SEC Conference Tournament-South Carolina vs Mississippi State
Dawn Staley (left) guided forward A’ja Wilson (right) and the South Carolina Gamecocks to the 2017 NCAAW Championship and the USA Women’s National Team, including Wilson, to the 2018 FIBA World Cup gold medal.
Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

Dawn Staley and A’ja Wilson won a national title in 2017 as a formidable coach-player duo at South Carolina. Then, they defeated the world’s best last summer to take the FIBA Women’s World Cup title.

This weekend, Staley and Wilson have the chance to take down the world once more, but they’ll face some stiff competition at the other end of the floor.

As participants with South Carolina ties, Staley will coach the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game Home Team, which has a roster made up of players who are from, or who have played basketball in, North or South Carolina. South Carolina native A’ja Wilson, who plays for the Las Vegas Aces in the WNBA, is expected to be the star of the show.

The Home Team also features ESPN analyst Jay Williams, who played college basketball at Duke; television host and actor Terrence J, who grew up in North Carolina and attended North Carolina A&T; and rapper Rapsody, who is from North Carolina and attended NC State.

Meanwhile, Seattle Storm guard and three-time WNBA champion Sue Bird will coach the Away Team, which is made up of players with ties to anywhere but the Carolinas. Her roster stars Chicago Sky center Stefanie Dolson.

Besides Dolson, who was on winning Team Clippers at last year’s All-Star Weekend, Bird’s Away Team features rapper Quavo — last year’s MVP and another Team Clippers alum; 2018 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Ray Allen; and comedian Hasan Minhaj, who is also making his second appearance in the celebrity game.

While Wilson and Staley have the obvious longtime connection still working for them, Bird’s squad features a handful of players with experience in this very game. Will the power of the Carolina players’ shared roots trip up a roster of celebrity game veterans? And how will Bird’s current NBA experience translate to coaching an NBA Hall of Famer?

One thing’s for certain: this game, especially with these women, is going to be a lot of fun for everyone involved.

NBA All-Star Celebrity Game: Home Team vs. Away Team

Game information

When: Friday, Feb. 15, at 7 p.m. ET

Where: Bojangles’ Coliseum, Charlotte, NC

How to watch: ESPN

Complete rosters for the Home Team and the Away Team can be found here.

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