In the first two returns of All-Star fan voting, we saw a familiar pattern taking form for the leading vote-getters. On Thursday, we got the third and final glimpse at the All-Star ballots and it pretty much confirmed who we can expect to see in the starting lineup come February.Â
Lakers’ LeBron James and Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo finish as leaders in the NBA’s final 2023-24 All-Star fan returns; voting ends Saturday: pic.twitter.com/Mlp2PWR6cD
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) January 18, 2024
With just a few days left to vote, this is likely what the final returns will look like. In the West, Luka Doncic and Stephen Curry lead all guards, while LeBron James, Nikola Jokic, and Kevin Durant hold a tight grip over players in the frontcourt. On the other side, a lot of younger names are making their mark, with Tyrese Haliburton and Trae Young leading East guards. As for the frontcourt spots, those will go to Giannis Antetokounmpo, Joel Embiid, and Jayson Tatum.
NBA Fans Debate
All-in-all, it’s hard to complain about the results this year. Respect was paid to the legends while recognizing some younger stand-outs. Of course, it wasn’t lost on the fans that Giannis was the leading vote-getter this season by over 300,000 votes.Â
Thanasis probably voted for Giannis 500k times
— Lakers All Day Everyday (@LADEig) January 18, 2024
Like it or not, Giannis appears to be the face of the NBA right now and it’s no wonder why fans are so eager to see him perform at the event with his high-flying dunks and powerful skill set. Plus, it’s no secret that he uses All-Star weekend as a recruiting opportunity for fellow stars.
Can we acknowledge that Giannis leads the way overall 👀
— UK Bucks (@UK_Bucks) January 18, 2024
Naturally, there were plenty of fans who took issue with the voting and called out the positioning of several controversial players like Ja Morant, Kevin Durant, and Austin Reaves, who shockingly ranks 10th on the list.
NBA All Star voting such a joke. Luka and Steph over SGA, Kyrie shouldn’t even be on the list. Austin Reaves also shouldn’t be on the list. KD no way should be that high. And JA Morant?? Really??? And that’s just the west!!!!!
— Bobby Brewer III (@BobbyBrewer20) January 18, 2024
One major criticism of the fan voting is the lack of recognition for Devin Booker, who placed 9th in the West despite being one of the five best guards in the league.
Ja ahead of Booker despite playing 7 games all season 😂😂
— trenton (@RentFreeGrizzly) January 18, 2024
With the All-Star starters set in stone, who might we expect to see fill out the bench? Besides the players included in the fan voting, potential All-Star reserves could include Lauri Markkanen, Rudy Gobert, or Scottie Barnes. We’ll find out soon enough how the final teams are assembled, but this season is back to the old format, meaning the East vs. West will battle each other for All-Star Sunday.
LeBron Is Still King In The West
A lot of storylines can be drawn from the 2024 All-Star polls. As the leading vote-getter, Giannis Antetokounmpo has earned a lot of favor with fans due to his charismatic demeanor and hard-working mentality. Even so, LeBron James isn’t too far behind him and he’s the top vote-getter out of all players in the West. At 39 years old, it’s pretty wild that James was not only voted an All-Star again, but that he’s still so overwhelmingly popular among fans compared to other superstars like Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid, and Luka Doncic.
This season, after a hot start, James is averaging 24.7 points, 7.6 assists, and 7.2 rebounds per game on 52.4% shooting and he’s more than worthy of an All-Star appearance. But regardless of his stats, James is going to be voted a starter every year until he retires. After 20+ years of greatest, he’s earned that kind of respect from the fans and that will never change so long as he’s active and healthy in the NBA. When he retires, it will be up to another star to fill the void and take up his mantle, but James is still going strong right now and it’s truly unprecedented what he’s been able to do at almost 40 years old.
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