Giannis: I'd pick LeBron 1st in All-Star draft, befriend him 'for free agency'

Under this year's new All-Star Game format, the leading vote-getter in each conference will be made a captain, and the two will then draft their respective teams from the pool of remaining All-Star honorees.

After the first round of fan voting, Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo has the inside track to earning Eastern Conference captain honors. There are still a ton of fan votes to be tallied before Antetokounmpo can start counting his chickens, but he already knows who he'd draft with the first pick. His choice won't surprise you, but his reasoning might.

"If my teammates are available I'm going with my teammates," Antetokounmpo told WISN's Stephen Watson on Friday. "But if not, I gotta go with LeBron James, best player in the world, so we can have a good relationship for free agency."

James, of course, will be an unrestricted free agent this summer, and has reportedly declined to commit to returning to the Cleveland Cavaliers. The popular consensus is that if he does ditch the Cavs it will be for a more glamorous market like Los Angeles. But in pure basketball terms, he couldn't do much better for a new running mate than the transcendent, 23-year-old, 6-foot-11 unicorn who looks increasingly like his heir apparent.

"You never know," Antetokounmpo said, "he might come play here."