2013 NBA All-Star: Saturday Night participants announced

The Eastern and Western Conference teams for the 2013 All-Star Saturday night have been announced.

By Zach Harper

Feb 7, 2013 at 7:25 pm ET • 3 min read

The 2012 dunk champ will get to defend his title. (Getty Images)

The Dunk Contest, 3-point Contest, Skills Challenge and Shooting Stars participants have been selected for the Eastern and Western Conference. The NBA and the two captains (Chris Paul and Dwyane Wade) have selected their teams and will have them square off for a charitable donation prize of $350,000 from State Farm. The losing team will get a charitable donation of $150,000 from State Farm.

Eastern Conference dunk participants:

James White, New York Knicks: This is what the YouTube generation of basketball fans has been waiting for. James White is a dunk contest legend, but has never been on an NBA team long enough or at the right time to take a crack at the biggest dunk contest in the world. With a routine comprised of almost all free throw line dunks, he might have a chance to finally stake his claim as the greatest dunker of all time.

Gerald Green, Indiana Pacers: Green is a two-time participant in the dunk contest and even won it in Las Vegas in 2007. He and White squared off in the 2009 D-League dunk contest but Green couldn't walk away with the victory. Will he bring out another cupcake as a prop or will he go with less gimmicky and nastier stuff like this?

Terrence Ross, Toronto Raptors: Rookie Terrence Ross is a player myself and the rest of the internet have been hoping would be selected for this year's contest. He is the type of dunker that wouldn't need props and skits to be impressive in the contest. He is already one of the better in-game dunkers, but will that translate to the contest format?

Western Conference dunk participants:

Kenneth Faried, Denver Nuggets: Faried is a fan favorite but will he be a great dunker in the contest? He's never been one for creative dunks during game. He's all about throwing down on people and using his power and athleticism to bring fury to the rim. Maybe he can bring out big men from the NBA and ask them to try to block his dunk?

Eric Bledsoe, Los Angeles Clippers: This was an intriguing pick that I didn't expect. People love smaller guards who can get up for big dunks and Bledsoe will be the smallest guy in the contest. Is he capable of turning those big in-game dunks into creative ones? Chris Paul claims Bledsoe shows the creativity in practice, so he could be a real dark horse for this competition.

Jeremy Evans, Utah Jazz: The reigning champ is here! Jeremy Evans wowed everybody in the preseason with his block and dunk against Ronny Turiaf. Now he'll be back to defend his title and try to be the first repeat dunk contest winner since Nate Robinson went back-to-back in 2009 and 2010. He'd also be the first legitimate repeat winner since Jason Richardson in 2002 and 2003.

Eastern Conference 3-point contestants:

Steve Novak, New York Knicks: 91 3FGs (22nd), 205 3FGAs (32nd), 44.4 percent (3rd)