Kobe, Wade lead stars into Puerto Rico matchup

NBA stars Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Dwight Howard and Kevin Durant are among the players set to headline the World All-Star Classic on Sunday in Puerto Rico, organisers said on Wednesday.

The San Juan event will also feature NBA stars Amare Stoudemire, Blake Griffin, Kevin Garnett, Carlos Boozer, Chris Kaman, Chris Bosh, Kevin Love, Paul Pierce, Rajon Rondo and Tyson Chandler.

The game is meant to be the first stop on a six-game world tour featuring NBA stars with games on November 1-2 at London, November 6 at Macau and November 8-9 at Melbourne, Australia.

But ESPN reported that the remainder of the tour could be postponed after the Puerto Rico game, which featured brisk ticket sales and will see a portion of proceeds donated to player charities.

LeBron James, Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony rejected an offer to play in the global trek, according to the report.