WNBA Stars to Headline NBA All-Star Celebrity Game

-- Nelly, Nick Cannon, and Ice Cube to Hoop it Up at NBA All-Star Jam Session --

-- ESPN to Televise Celebrity Game on Friday, February 17 at 7:00 p.m. (ET) During NBA All-Star 2006 --

NEW YORK, NY (February 13, 2005) – 2006 Golden Globe™ nominee Eva Longoria, star of ABC's hit “Desperate Housewives”, and Academy Award nominee Queen Latifah (Chicago, 2002) will coach stars such as Nelly, Nick Cannon, and Ice Cube during the McDonald’s NBA All-Star Celebrity Game presented by 2K Sports as part of NBA All-Star 2006 in Houston. The game will be televised live on ESPN on Friday, Feb. 17 at 7:00 pm (ET) from NBA All-Star Jam Session presented by NOKIA.

The All-Star Celebrity Game will feature two teams: H-Town, coached by Longoria vs. Clutch City, coached by Queen Latifah. In addition to stars from the music industry, television stars such as Carlos Benard from hit show “24”, “Scrubs” star Donald Faison, the “Bachelor” Andrew Firestone, and “Law & Order: SVU” star Chris Meloni.

ESPN’s Stuart Scott will host the event, Mark Jones will call play-by-play with Tom Tolbert and Sal Masakela serving as courtside reporters.

The game’s halftime performance will feature a special musical performance by the chart-topping rock group Lifehouse.

The roster for the McDonald’s NBA All-Star Celebrity Game presented by 2K Sports is as follows:

Clutch City
Coach: Queen Latifah
GM – ESPN’s Greg Anthony
Bow Wow, hip-hop artist/actor
Andrew Firestone, ABC’s The Bachelor
Donald Fasion, actor
Chris Meloni, actor
Ice Cube, actor/performer
Kevin Frazier, Entertainment Tonight
Swin Cash, WNBA’s Detroit Shock

H-Town
Coach: Eva Longoria
GM – ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith
Nick Cannon, actor/singer
Chris Brown, R&B singer
Carlos Bernard, actor
Nelly, hip hop artist
Brandon Routh, actor
Tony Potts, Access Hollywood
Becky Hammon, WNBA’s NY Liberty

Participants in the Celebrity Game will wear uniforms outfitted by Reebok, the exclusive uniform supplier of the NBA. The home team will wear the Houston Rockets’ Hardwood Classics' Night uniform, while the away team will wear the Rocket’s red jerseys.

Title sponsor McDonald’s and presenting sponsor 2K Sports will also participate in a number of NBA All-Star activities throughout the weekend. McDonald's is the Official Quick Service Restaurant of the NBA and will have a restaurant on-site at NBA All-Star Jam Session presented by Nokia, as well as being presenting sponsor of the Mascot Slam Dunk to be held Saturday, February18 at Jam Session.

NBA All-Star 2006 in Houston will feature a week of activities that will showcase the greatest athletes in the world playing basketball at the highest level on an international stage and will display the league’s deep commitment to its community. The week will culminate with the 2006 NBA All-Star Game, which features the top players from the Eastern and Western conferences going head to head. The Game will be televised on TNT on Sunday, February 19 at 8:00 p.m. (ET).