Brooklyn Nets: History of Nets in NBA All-Star Game

1994: Kenny Anderson, Derrick Coleman

In 17 previous NBA seasons, the New Jersey Nets had never had a player selected to start an All-Star Game. That changed in a big way in 1994.

Both Derrick Coleman and Kenny Anderson were voted in by the fans to start the game for the Eastern Conference. It also marked the first time the Nets had two All-Stars in a single season.

Coleman had come to New Jersey as the No. 1 overall pick from Syracuse University in the 1990 NBA Draft, with Anderson following a year later as the second overall pick from Georgia Tech in 1991.

It was the first All-Star selection for each and they were the first All-Stars from New Jersey in eight years.

At the break, Coleman was averaging 20.9 points, 11.6 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.9 blocks in 37.1 minutes per game, shooting 45.7 percent overall and 30.3 percent on his 1.5 attempts per game from 3-point range.

Anderson, meanwhile, was putting up 19.3 points, 9.3 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 2.1 steals in 39.6 minutes a night, shooting 43.1 percent overall and 39.7 percent on 1.3 deep attempts a game.

The Nets, however, got to the break at just 22-24, still reeling from the offseason death of star guard Drazen Petrovic. New Jersey was fourth in the Atlantic Division and clinging to the eighth spot in the East standings by just a half-game ahead of the Charlotte Hornets.

At Minneapolis, Anderson played 16 minutes and scored six points with four rebounds and three assists, hitting 3-of-10 from the floor and missing his lone 3 ball.

Coleman had just two points in 18 minutes, adding three boards, an assist, a steal and a block, but was only 1-of-6 from the floor and missed a pair of 3s.

The East picked up the 127-118 win, with Scottie Pippen of the Chicago Bulls scoring 29 points with 11 rebounds, four steals, two assists and a block to win MVP honors.

The Nets surged after the break to a 23-13 finish and grabbed the No. 7 seed in the East, but fell in four games to the New York Knicks in the first round.

Coleman remained with the Nets until he demanded a trade in 1995 and was eventually dealt to the Philadelphia 76ers in a six-player deal in November 1995.

He signed with Charlotte as a free agent in January 1999, but was shipped back to Philadelphia in a three-team trade in October 2001. Traded to the Detroit Pistons in August 2004, he was waived by his hometown team in January 2005 and eventually retired.

Anderson remained with New Jersey until he was traded to the Hornets in January 1996 and wound up bouncing all over the NBA, playing with the Portland Trail Blazers, Boston Celtics, Seattle SuperSonics, New Orleans Hornets, Indiana Pacers, Atlanta Hawks and Los Angeles Clippers before playing one season in Lithuania in 2005-06.

He also was a member of the Toronto Raptors briefly, traded there by the Blazers, but never played for them before he was swapped to Boston five days later.

The 1994 All-Star nods were the only ones for Coleman and Anderson in their careers.