Ahead of the highly anticipated Game 1 in Minnesota on Wednesday, the league finally announced the final lineup of the 2023-24 All-NBA teams. The names are all of the players who were in the top five in MVP, including Jayson Tatum, Nikola Jokic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luka Doncic, and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The 2023-24 Kia All-NBA First Team:
▪️ Giannis Antetokounmpo of @Bucks
▪️ Luka Dončić of @dallasmavs
▪️ Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of @okcthunder
▪️ Nikola Jokić of @nuggets
▪️ Jayson Tatum of @celtics pic.twitter.com/rs5Qgetya6
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 22, 2024
The second and third teams came after, with Jalen Brunson ranking in the same tier as Kevin Durant, Anthony Davis, Anthony Edwards, and Kawhi Leonard. Meanwhile, familiar names filled the All-NBA third-team spots, such as LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Tyrese Haliburton, Devin Booker, and Domantas Sabonis.
The 2023-24 Kia All-NBA Second Team:
▪️ Jalen Brunson of @nyknicks
▪️ Anthony Davis of @Lakers
▪️ Kevin Durant of @Suns
▪️ Anthony Edwards of @Timberwolves
▪️ Kawhi Leonard of @LAClippers pic.twitter.com/tVBSpRslG4
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 22, 2024
The 2023-24 Kia All-NBA Third Team:
▪️ Devin Booker of @Suns
▪️ Stephen Curry of @warriors
▪️ Tyrese Haliburton of @Pacers
▪️ LeBron James of @Lakers
▪️ Domantas Sabonis of @SacramentoKings pic.twitter.com/gFDgbcdPLX
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 22, 2024
All in all, it’s a pretty fair list that contains a mix of rising talent and proven veteran stars. Even so, many fans wanted to debate how the teams turned out and many felt that at least one player was misrepresented for their spectacular season. Particularly, it was Jayson Tatum who caught the most heat.
Despite his role on a Celtics team that’s cruising through the East, fans just aren’t buying into his game and it showed in the comments when various people called him out by name.
https://twitter.com/Sportsfanbobby/status/1793431414173769761
Polar bear from the Celtics
— 𝚛𝚞𝚗 (@RunWithFox) May 22, 2024
The argument could be made that Brunson deserved a spot on the first team over Tatum, especially since his team isn’t nearly as stacked as the current Celtics roster. Brunson averaged 28.7 points per game this season and led the Knicks to the 2nd seed in the East amid injuries and setbacks all year long.
There’s not a team in the league that would take Brunson over Tatum. Stop watching the box scores and start watching basketball
— Matty Ice (@mattyicee9) May 23, 2024
Another point of contention among the fans was LeBron James not making the All-NBA second team. Many felt he should have at least been awarded that honor for his efforts on the Lakers this season with averages of 25.7 points, 8.3 assists, and 7.3 rebounds per game on 54% shooting. Sadly, he fell to third this year and it shows that his decline is finally at hand.
Kawhi over LeBron is a joke & so is tatum over AD
— ali (@alij8h) May 22, 2024
This year, just like every year, there were some who disagreed with the final results but this kind of discourse has become the norm in today’s media-driven society. With the final slate of awards now officially announced, the regular season is now fully over and players have already long since shifted their focus.
New Generation Is On The Rise
Perhaps one of the most notable trends of the All-NBA teams this year is how many of those at the top are relatively new to the scene. Just a few years ago, we had OGs like LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, and Anthony Davis at the top of the food chain and it was unthinkable that anyone would surpass them.
But now we have young risers entering the fold as some of the longest-tenured veterans begin to phase out from superstardom. Luka Doncic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Jayson Tatum are all at least 26 or younger. Meanwhile, guys like Anthony Edwards and Tyrese Haliburton are still on their rookie deals.
The start of a new era is also being reflected in the NBA playoffs. Between the four teams remaining, Jayson Tatum, Luka Doncic, Tyrese Haliburton, and Anthony Edwards are the four best players and all of them are going for their first-ever championship.
In many ways, the league is entering a brand new era and it will be exciting to see which of these inexperienced squads will rise up to claim this opportunity and become the face of a brand new period in basketball history.
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