LeBron James has fun with Russell Westbrook's All-Star 'snub'

1:42 PM ET

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio -- LeBron James said that after drafting the All-Stars on Thursday that he'll lead against Stephen Curry's team in Los Angeles next month, he didn't hear from any of the players on his squad.

Yes, that means that despite James picking former Cleveland Cavaliers teammate Kyrie Irving to be his starting point guard, their communication remains sparse.

However, James -- named the Eastern Conference captain and awarded the No. 1 pick as the top overall vote-getter for the All-Star Game -- did make sure to reach out to one of his players: Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook.

Somehow the reigning NBA MVP got the impression that he was the last pick in the draft from the team roster that James revealed on Uninterrupted's Twitter account:

👀 pic.twitter.com/pUeSSelR0V
— UNINTERRUPTED (@uninterrupted) January 26, 2018

The roster, of course, was alphabetical. And the last name "Westbrook" landed the Thunder's point guard at the bottom of the list. Apparently motivated by the perceived slight, Westbrook scored a season-high 46 points in a win over the Washington Wizards televised nationally on TNT on Thursday.

"I heard from Russ," James said after Cavs shootaround Friday morning. "I reached out to him afterwards. Like, 'What's wrong with you, man?' We've got a good relationship, so it's pretty cool."

According to The Athletic, James used the No. 1 pick on Kevin Durant. Curry followed with Giannis Antetokounmpo. Then James selected Anthony Davis.

James wouldn't verify the order at the top of the draft, but poked fun at how Westbrook thought the bottom of the draft went.

"I don't know," James said. "The only thing I know for sure is that Russ went last. ... He's crazy."

Kevin Love, who will also be reunited with Irving as a member of James' team during All-Star weekend, had some fun with the mystery surrounding the draft order, assuring Westbrook that he had nothing to worry about.

"Where was I picked? I don't know. Probably dead last," Love said. "I'm the guy in the pick-up game where during the summer it's like, 'OK, he's a big guy that can shoot. Guess I will take him.' I don't know how much I'm ... you know, I'm not going to do the between-the-leg dunks, windmills, but I'm going to be getting those rebounds and outletting the ball. I guess I add some value with that. I know Russ will like it."

Fans certainly would like to see the draft play out on TV in the future. But it won't have the same dynamic of James and Curry continuing their NBA Finals rivalry with another draft against each other, at least at not next year.

"It would be great. Only problem is it won't be me and Steph as captains," James revealed. "I don't think you can be captains twice in a row. I think that's the rule, even if you are the leading vote-getter, I think it goes to the next guy. But it was good, though. It was good."

James vowed to reveal his full draft process in the future, hopefully well before next year's All-Star Game.

"I drafted according to best players available, filling out my roster," he said. "I picked, Steph picked and my next available guy was there. He took the next one, so I had to go down to who I wanted next. At some point I'll tell you all the draft, but it won't be here."

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