After the starters were announced for the 2019 NBA All-Star Game, many on social media wondered if the Eastern Conference starters could defeat the reigning NBA Champion-Golden State Warriors.
Since this would never occur in real life, our NBA.com staff took matters to the only realm this matchup would be possible - NBA 2K19.
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We put these two teams into a seven-game playoff series to see who would take care of business, and the results were somewhat surprising.
Before you take a look, it is worth mentioning that the settings were changed so there was no bench play involved. It was the Warriors' starting five versus the Eastern Conference starting five with each lineup playing all 48 minutes. Fatigue and substitutions were also both turned off.
Game 1 - Warriors 132, East starters 103
Warriors: Kevin Durant - 41 points, nine rebounds, three assists, three blocks, one steal
East: Kyrie Irving - 29 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, two steals, one block
DeMarcus Cousins added 34 points, eight rebounds and seven assists while Stephen Curry drained seven threes on his way to a 29-point, 11-assist double-double. Kemba Walker struggled shooting 5-for-18 from the field.
Game 2 - East starters 110, Warriors 104
Warriors: DeMarcus Cousins - 35 points, 16 rebounds, two assists, two steals, one block
East: Giannis Antetokounmpo - 33 points, 10 rebounds, nine assists, two steals, one block
Curry shot 2-for-11 from beyond the arc, leaving the Warriors needing more in Game 2. Walker made up for his Game 1 performance by scoring 27 points and Joel Embiid battled with Cousins on his way to a 15-point, 21-rebound double-double.
Game 3 - Warriors 109, East starters 97
Warriors: Stephen Curry - 26 points, nine assists, seven rebounds, two steals
East: Kyrie Irving - 32 points, seven assists, five rebounds, one steal
It was a team effort for the Warriors with Curry, Durant, Cousins and Klay Thompson all eclipsing the 20-point mark. The East struggled to keep up, with Kawhi Leonard scoring six points on a 3-for-14 shooting night.
Game 4 - East starters 125, Warriors 124
Warriors: Stephen Curry - 49 points, six assists, four steals, three rebounds
East: Kawhi Leonard - 35 points, 10 rebounds, three assists, three steals
Much like Kemba's Game 2 effort after a poor Game 1, Leonard followed suit with a huge Game 4 after a bad Game 3. Irving added 34 points while Embiid had 22 points and 21 rebounds and Antetokounmpo notched a triple-double to edge out a one-point win.
Game 5 - Warriors 117, East starters 110
Warriors: Stephen Curry - 45 points, eight assists, five rebounds, four steals
East: Giannis Antetokounmpo - 29 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, one steal, one block
The East struggled to shoot the 3-ball in Game 5, giving way to the Warriors' 3-2 series lead. Curry posted 40 points for the second game in a row and Cousins had a near-triple-double with 17 points, 17 rebounds and eight assists.
Game 6 - Warriors 105, East starters 100
Warriors: Stephen Curry - 26 points, 10 assists, five rebounds, four steals
East: Kyrie Irving - 35 points, six rebounds, five assists, two steals
A second-half comeback by the East starters was shut down as the Warriors closed out the series in six games. Curry, Durant and Cousins all scored over 20 and Draymond Green made his presence felt with 17 points, 14 rebounds, eight assists and three steals. Leonard and Walker combined for only 23 points, unable to keep up with the Warriors' offence.
Warriors stats
Stephen Curry - 32.7p (50.8% FG, 45.9% 3PT, 92.0% FT), 9.2a, 4.7r, 3.0s
Kevin Durant - 26.8p (49.6% FG, 43.2% 3PT, 91.7% FT), 9.7r, 5.3a, 2.8b, 1.3s
DeMarcus Cousins - 25.8p (47.2 FG, 31.8 3PT, 65.6 FT), 12.2r, 5.0a, 2.0s, 2.0b
Klay Thompson - 20.0p (47.1% FG, 47.7% 3PT, 85.0% FT), 4.7a, 2.3r, 1.7s
Draymond Green - 9.8p (42.6% FG, 30.0% 3PT, 53.8% FT), 8.8r, 9.0a, 2.2s, 1.0b
East starters stats
Kyrie Irving - 26.8p (48.2% FG, 34.0% 3PT, 84.6% FT), 7.0r, 6.2a
Giannis Antetokounmpo - 23.7p (52.5% FG, 18.2% 3PT, 75.0% FT), 12.2r, 8.0a, 1.7s, 1.0b
Joel Embiid - 20.3p (43.8% FG, 28.6% 3PT, 86.4% FT), 16.2r, 4.3a, 2.3b
Kawhi Leonard - 19.7p (41.3% FG, 46.2% 3PT, 90.9% FT), 10.3r, 3.0a, 2.0s
Kemba Walker - 17.0p (35.2 FG, 32.1 3PT, 78.6 FT), 8.0a, 4.0r, 1.5s