G-League Ignite to Join NBA Rising Stars Game

Four members from NBA G League Ignite will compete in the 2022 Clorox Rising Stars Game during the All-Star Weekend.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 19: Jaden Hardy #1 of the G League Ignite advances the ball against of the Grand Rapids Gold during the NBA G League Winter Showcase at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center on December 19, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Joe Buglewicz/Getty Images)

By Eduardo VillalpandoJanuary 30, 2022 10:38 PM ET

A new format of the NBA Rising Stars Game will take place during the 2022 All-Star Weekend at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio.

New format

The game will feature four seven-player teams competing in a three-game mini-tournament.

The NBA released a statement to announce the participants for the Clorox Rising Stars Game.

''The pool of 28 players will consist of 12 first-year NBA players, 12 second-year NBA players and four elite young players from NBA G League Ignite, a first-of-its-kind team dedicated to developing top prospects in preparation for the NBA Draft.''

Each team will select seven players, including one NBA G League Ignite player.

Sources: The NBA has a new format for Rising Stars at All-Star Weekend, featuring four seven-player teams competing in a three-game tournament and each game having final target score.

28 players: 12 rookies, 12 sophomores – and for the first time, four G League Ignite players.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) January 25, 2022

Ignite

The G-League Ignite squad was created to play exhibition games outside the G League's traditional scheduling. The goal of this is to develop elite prospects for one year.

Ignite played a total of 14 games in the G-League Showcase Cup, finishing with a record of seven wins and seven losses.

This season, 19 year-old Jaden Hardy and 18 year-old Michael Foster have led the team in scoring averaging 18 points per game. 6'9 power forward Foster also had a team high of 9.6 rebounds per contest.

Last season, Ignite had multiple players on their roster who went on to have stellar performances with NBA teams in the 2021 / 22 campaign.

2021 No. 2 overall pick Houston Rockets Jalen Green and Golden State Warriors Jonathan Kuminga have both showed how possible it is to effectively transition from Ignite to the NBA in just one year.