Exclusive: How Sean East II was inspired by NBA All-Star Weekend experience

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Exclusive: How Sean East II was inspired by NBA All-Star Weekend experience

David Yapkowitz, ClutchPoints

Thu, Mar 12, 2026 ·

4 min read

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Exclusive: How Sean East II was inspired by NBA All-Star Weekend experience appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .

The Rising Stars event over NBA All-Star Weekend gives fans a chance to see some of the top young players in the league from star rookies to standout second-year players. The event has evolved to include standouts from the G League as well, but it's always two-way contract players and assignment players. This season, Sean East II was the only non-NBA G League player to take part in the competition over All-Star Weekend.

East was a member of Team Austin coached by former NBA player Austin Rivers . He played a little over seven minutes, finishing with two points, one rebound and one assist as Team Austin was eliminated in the opening round. East also was selected to play in the G League Next Up Game, featuring some of the best players in the G League all season.

For him, just being able to take part in All-Star Weekend and share the court with some of the best young players in the NBA, was an incredible experience. East grew up watching the All-Star game, and still has strong memories of his favorite moments.

"Just watching the battles between Kobe [Bryant] and LeBron [James], Kyrie [Irving], everybody, all those great players. Just watching that on Sunday night with my family," East told ClutchPoints in an exclusive interview. "It was good. . .I got to take it all in, it was fun. I wish we could do it over again. It was fun. I enjoyed myself and I can't wait to hopefully play on Sunday one day."

Playing on Sunday's marquee All-Star game one day is no easy task. There has yet to be any players that made an NBA All-Star team who started in the G League. Players such as Houston Rockets guard Fred VanVleet and Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam have made All-Star teams after spending ample time playing in the G League.

But in the case of Siakam, he was drafted by the Toronto Raptors first. With VanVleet, he immediately joined the Raptors as an undrafted free agent before setting foot in the G League. But aside from the All-Star goals, simply making it to the NBA is indeed a realistic option for East.

He's been on a tear in the G League this season, and it's already caught the attention of NBA teams.

"I've been getting a little buzz concerning a two-way contract," East said. "But we're gonna see. I'm gonna keep on doing the things I do and hopefully that call-up does come soon."

After going undrafted in the 2024 NBA Draft, East latched on with the Los Angeles Lakers for summer league. He played with the Lakers squad at both the California Classic and in Las Vegas, averaging 6.9 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.9 assists.

East ended up playing in Canada with the CEBL (Canadian Elite Basketball League), and set the league record for the most points scored in a single season with 546. This year, he joined the Utah Jazz for training camp, but was one of the final cuts before the start of the season.

Since being waived, East has been playing with the Jazz's G League affiliate, the Salt Lake City Stars. This is his first official foray into the G League as a professional, and so far the competition has been up to par.

"It's good competition. It's not quite the NBA for sure, but it's just a good mix of players that play in the NBA and in the G League," East said. "It's pretty solid competition. Everybody is just trying to work their way up to the NBA for sure."

In his first full season in the G League, East has appeared in 44 games for Salt Lake City. He's been averaging 19.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 1.2 steals with splits of 51.3 percent shooting from the field, 40.3 percent shooting from the 3-point line and 75.5 percent shooting from the free-throw line.

He's now firmly on the radar of NBA teams, and it wouldn't be surprising if by next season, he is signed to, at least, a two-way contract. He's shown he can be a capable scoring threat, while still being able to quarterback an offense and be a playmaking guard. But until that call-up comes, East is just relishing in the new-found attention.

"It's just a dream come true," East said. "So I just want to keep on living it up."

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