
On Thursday night, the NBA on TNT crew would announce the starters for the 2025 NBA All-Star Game tournament taking place on February 16th. While the fan vote would account for 50% of the decision, players and the media would each account for 25%.
In the Western Conference, the five starters are:
- Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors)
- Shan Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder)
- LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers)
- Kevin Durant (Phoenix Suns)
- Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets)
Jokic and SGA would both rank 1st amongst fans, players, and the media at their respective positions in the West. The three-time MVP would also lead all vote-getters in the West. The trio of aging superstars would show why they’re still some of the best in the game with Curry, Durant, and James landing their 11th, 15th, and record 21st All-Star nod. For James, it is his 21st straight nod, only missing the All-Star Game his rookie season.
For the Eastern Conference, the five starters are:
- Jalen Brunson (New York Knicks
- Donovan Mitchell (Cleveland Cavaliers)
- Jayson Tatum (Boston Celtics)
- Karl-Anthony Towns (New York Knicks)
- Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks)
Antetokounmpo would lead all vote-getters across both conferences with over 4 million total votes. He would also be the only player in the East to be ranked first in the fan vote, player vote, and media vote. Tatum would tie Antetokounmpo at the top of the media vote but would rank second in the fan and player votes.
The biggest shock from the East starters would be the inclusion of Knicks guard Jalen Brunson and the exclusion of Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball. Brunson would finish second in the media and player vote but third in the fan vote behind Ball and Donovan Mitchell. Ball would lead the East guards with the fan vote but would finish third in the player vote and seventh in the media vote, with the Hornets’ 11-29 record playing into the vote.
With the reserves yet to be announced, several players are nearly guaranteed to be All-Stars while questions remain for the last few spots.
In the West front court, it is nearly guaranteed that Victor Wembanyama will receive his first of many All-Star nods. In the backcourt, it’s nearly guaranteed that Anthony Edwards will be an All-Star. In the East frontcourt, there are no guarantees with several top vote-getters missing games. In the backcourt, LaMelo Ball has the best chance of landing his second All-Star nod after missing out as a starter.
Despite both teams having a league-leading 36-7 record in their respective conferences, the Thunder and Cavaliers only have one All-Star each (at the time of this writing).
While the argument can be made for both teams having a second or potentially third All-Star, the competition for the reserves spots may be at an All-Time high.
In the West, names like Ja Morant, Alperen Sengun, Jalen Williams, James Harden, and Kyrie are just some of the names competing for the reserve spots in the West. In the East, names including Trae Young, Cade Cunningham, Tyler Herro, Zach Lavine, and Jaylen Brown have all made strong cases to be named an NBA All-Star this season.
The league’s 30 head coaches will choose the reserves before they are announced on January 30th.
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