Celebrities pile into Huntsman center for red carpet event, All-Star Celebrity Game 

SALT LAKE CITY -- Thousands of fans piled into the Huntsman Center Friday night for the 2023 NBA Celebrity All-Star game.

Before the 22 players and their coaches hit the court, they attended a red carpet event.

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Actor Simu Liu from Marvel’s Shang-Chi stopped to talk with KSL, saying he always enjoys visiting Utah.

“The last time I was here it was about a year ago, I had the best snowboarding trip ever,” Liu said.

TV personality Guillermo Rodriguez, Jimmy Kimmel’s talk show side kick, said he was pumped for the All-Star game sporting a suit and shorts on the red carpet.

“Who wears it best, me or LeBron,” he asked KSL.

Comedian Hasan Minhaj was excited to be back in the Beehive State after performing his stand up routine in 2021.

“The air is thinner up here. I don’t know if it’s Utah or the pressure,” he joked.

The real pressure came when the players hit the court. Actor Ben Affleck, who was in town promoting his new film ‘Air’ introduced the 22 players and their coaches. 

Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith and Basketball Hall of Fame finalist Dwyane Wade served as honorary captains.

Utah fans cheered on names like DK  Metcalf who ended up throwing down a one-handed dunk during the game. He would later be named the game’s MVP.

WWE Wrestler The Miz made an impressive shot from half court in the fourth quarter but it wasn’t enough for Team Ryan. Team Dwayne wins 81 to 78.

The game was able to raise $142,000 for charitable foundation 5 for the Fight, an organization focused on funding cancer research.

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