No playground-style draft with captains picking teams, no target score in the fourth quarter — the 2024 NBA All-Star Game next month is going traditional. East vs. West for four quarters.
Who do the fans want to see in this game? The first returns from fan voting are in and here would be the starting five for each conference:
EAST: Damian Lillard, Tyrese Haliburton, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Joel Embiid, Jayson Tatum.
WEST: Stephen Curry, Luka Doncic, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Nikola Jokic
LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo lead their respective conferences in the first fan returns of #NBAAllStar Voting presented by AT&T.
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) January 4, 2024
Fans account for 50% of the vote to decide All-Star starters. NBA players and a media panel account for 25% each.
Next fan update: 1/11. pic.twitter.com/KbFeBRTsnF
Here are some quick thoughts on the early returns:
• No huge surprises here. This pretty much followed the expected form.
• Antetokounmpo is the leading overall vote-getter, with LeBron James second.
• The second East guard slot is the closest race for a starting spot. Haliburton somewhat surprisingly has the most votes (it’s deserved and this shows how much of a breakout star he has become), but second place Damian Lillard is just 81,722 votes ahead of Trae Young, ground that could certainly be made up in future weeks.
• The race where the media/player votes — which combined make up 50% of the total, with fan voting counting for 50% — could swing who starts, is West guard. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is third in early returns behind fan-favorite Stephen Curry (and by more than 300,000 votes), but will the media and player votes put SGA into the starting five over Curry? Doncic most likely is safe, but the SGA vs. Curry race could end up very, very close in a potential changing of the guard moment.
• The East frontcourt of Antetokounmpo, Embiid and Tatum is pretty much a lock. The West frontcourt of LeBron, Durant and Jokic probably is as well; some media/players will vote for Anthony Davis or Kawhi Leonard to start over LeBron, but likely not enough to sway the final results. (This isn’t like West guard where there is a clear alternative to the established star, like Gilgeous-Alexander to Curry.)
• Fun to see rookie Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren getting so many votes.
• The campaign out of Boston and some media to make Derrick White landed him eighth in guard voting out East. He will not get the start, but will the NBA coaches — who vote on the reserves — put him in?
• Fan voting runs through Jan. 20 and ballots can be cast on the NBA App or at NBA.com.
• The All-Star Game is set for Sunday, Feb. 18 at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The game will air on TNT, as will the All-Star Saturday Night and Friday night Rising Stars games.
