Clippers' Kawhi Leonard added to NBA All-Star squad to fill U.S. player pool spot in new format

The NBA announced that Kawhi Leonard has been named an All-Star by league commissioner Adam Silver. Leonard was added to the player pool in order to satisfy the necessary number of players for the league's USA vs. World format.

The new format will consist of three teams of eight players: two teams made up of American players, with one "World" team of the league's international talent. Of the 24 original All-Stars selected, there were only 15 American players, as Karl-Anthony Towns will play for the World team. Adding Leonard now brings the total to 15 American players.

The players who will compete on each team will be revealed Tuesday night ahead of the Dallas Mavericks vs. Boston Celtics game.

This marks another overhaul of the All-Star Game format. The league has toyed with different versions of the event, with last year marking the first turn at a round-robin tournament. The tournament style will remain the same this year, with three games being played to decide a winner of the weekend's events. However, how the matchups will be determined has yet to be announced.

Leonard was considered one of the biggest snubs when All-Star announcements were made, as he's having his best season since his first year in L.A. He's averaging a career high 27.6 points, 6.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists and is leading the league in steals at 2.1 a game. He's also been fairly durable this season, having played in 73% of the Clippers' games this season. That's a major bounce back from a season ago where he only appeared in 37 games, which he's set to match that total with the next appearance he makes.