NEW YORK – Phoenix Suns head coach Monty Williams and his staff will coach Team LeBron in the 2022 NBA All-Star Game, which will be played on Sunday, Feb. 20 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland.  The 71^st NBA All-Star Game will air live at 8 p.m. ET on TNT and ESPN Radio in the United States.

Phoenix (40-9, .816) defeated the San Antonio Spurs 115-110 tonight to clinch the best record in the Western Conference through games played on Sunday, Feb. 6.  As a result, Williams has earned a spot as a head coach in the NBA All-Star Game for the first time.  He will be the Suns’ first NBA All-Star Game head coach since Mike D’Antoni in the 2006-07 season.

Under Williams, the Suns have the best record in the NBA this season and are off to their best start in franchise history through the first 49 games of a season.  Phoenix won a franchise-record 18 consecutive games from Oct. 30 – Dec. 2 and has a current 10-game winning streak.  Williams was named the NBA Western Conference Coach of the Month for games played in October/November.

Williams is in his third season as Phoenix’s head coach.  Last season, he guided the Suns to a 51-21 record and their first appearance in the NBA Finals since the 1992-93 season.  Williams previously served as head coach of the New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans for five seasons.

Each head coach in the NBA All-Star Game will lead the team that includes the captain from the same conference.  Williams will coach the All-Star team captained by Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James.

The eligible head coach of the team with the best record in the Eastern Conference through games played on Feb. 6 will coach the All-Star team captained by Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant.  Philadelphia 76ers head coach Doc Rivers is ineligible because he served as a head coach in the NBA All-Star Game last season.