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New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson, Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry and Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard headlined the 2024 NBA All-Star reserves, which were announced Thursday night.
Coaches around the league had their say as they voted on who else should crack the All-Star teams in the Eastern and Western Conferences. Here’s how each squad looks now that all of the results have come in.
Eastern Conference All-Stars
Starters
- Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks (captain)
- Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers
- Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics
- Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana Pacers
- Damian Lillard, Milwaukee Bucks
Reserves
- Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks
- Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland Cavaliers
- Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics
- Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat
- Julius Randle, New York Knicks
- Tyrese Maxey, Philadelphia 76ers
- Paolo Banchero, Orlando Magic
Western Conference All-Stars
Starters
- LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers (captain)
- Kevin Durant, Phoenix Suns
- Nikola Jokić, Denver Nuggets
- Luka Dončić, Dallas Mavericks
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder
Reserves
- Anthony Edwards, Minnesota Timberwolves
- Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
- Kawhi Leonard, Los Angeles Clippers
- Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers
- Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns
- Paul George, Loss Angeles Clippers
- Karl-Anthony Towns, Minnesota Timberwolves
Brunson was perhaps the biggest omission when the starters were first announced. He finished with the same weighted score as Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard and lost the tiebreaker since he had fewer fan votes.
The 27-year-old is averaging 26.8 points and 6.5 assists while shooting 42.2 percent on three-pointers. There was no question a first career All-Star nod would beckon when the reserves were revealed.
Knicks Videos@sny_knicks
JALEN BRUNSON. OUR ALL-STAR. ⭐️ <a href=”https://t.co/LA7GjZAdPz”>pic.twitter.com/LA7GjZAdPz</a>
Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey is another first-timer. As with Brunson, there wasn’t much doubt with Maxey thanks to a breakout campaign that has helped fill the void left by the James Harden trade.
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Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero punched the first of what’s likely to be multiple tickets to the All-Star Game. The reigning Rookie of the Year has continued to improve with 23 points, seven rebounds and five assists per night for the eighth-place Magic.
Wendell Epps@epps_wendell
OFFICIAL: Paolo Banchero has been named an Eastern Conference reserve for this year’s NBA All-Star game.<br><br>Paolo joins Shaquille O’Neal as the only players in Magic history to be named Rookie of the Year and then named an All-Star the following season.<br><br>Congratulations, Paolo!! 🎉 <a href=”https://t.co/wmDnFVT9ZX”>pic.twitter.com/wmDnFVT9ZX</a>
In the West, Leonard is an All-Star for the first time since 2020-21, a drought that’s a bit surprising before considering how many games he has missed due to injuries. The now six-time honoree is averaging 23.9 points on 52.6 percent shooting, including 43.9 percent from beyond the arc. He’s joined by teammate Paul George, who’s putting up 23.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game.
It was a good night for the top-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves, who will have two representatives (Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns) in the All-Star Game.
Every year plenty of fanbases feel wronged by the final outcome of the All-Star voting, and 2024 will be no different.
CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable@cjzero
Reminder: If you think someone is a snub, you gotta say who you’re removing to fit them on the squad
In the East, it’s tough to point to any obvious snubs, though. The Boston Celtics’ tandem of Kristaps Porziņģis and Derrick White could’ve gotten in on the reserves, but neither was a surefire lock. The same goes for Pascal Siakam, who continues to deliver after his midseason trade from the Toronto Raptors to the Indiana Pacers.
It was a slightly different story in the West, where there were only so many spots available to a bevy of worthy candidates.
The Oklahoma City Thunder’s Chet Holmgren and San Antonio Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama are neck and neck in the Rookie of the Year race, and neither got in. The Sacramento Kings’ De’Aaron Fox and Dallas Mavericks’ Kyrie Irving couldn’t break through in a stacked backcourt pool.
Some highlighted the Kings duo of Fox and Domantas Sabonis as getting dealt a particularly tough hand:
Gerald Bourguet@GeraldBourguet
Wow. No disrespect to KAT and the T-Wolves, but I didn’t have him getting in over Domantas Sabonis or De’Aaron Fox
James Ham@James_HamNBA
De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis both snubbed for Western Conference All-Star team.
Frankie Cartoscelli@FCartoscelli3
I get that the NBA is super talented right now.<br><br>But for a Kings team that is currently 27-19 behind the incredible play of Domantas Sabonis and De’Aaron Fox, this is a miss.<br><br>DeMarcus Cousins used to get snubbed due to Sacramento’s record. Not sure what the excuse is now.
J r u e@thatl0calguy
the NBA: stop complaining about your players being snubbed for All-Star selections until your team becomes good<br><br>*the Kings become a good team with Fox and Sabonis putting up All-Star numbers*<br><br>the NBA: <br><br> <a href=”https://t.co/YFOHEUsIaQ”>pic.twitter.com/YFOHEUsIaQ</a>
StatMuse@statmuse
All Stars this season:<br><br>2 — Los Angeles Lakers<br>0 — Sacramento Kings<br><br>The Kings are the 5 seed. The Lakers are the 9 seed. <a href=”https://t.co/75tdqnKpoO”>pic.twitter.com/75tdqnKpoO</a>
Nick Angstadt@NickVanExit
KAT over Sabonis for All-Star is a choice. <br><br>You can’t even make a stats argument for KAT. <a href=”https://t.co/afUhWT9hLs”>pic.twitter.com/afUhWT9hLs</a>
The 2024 All-Star Game will tip off Feb. 18 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The NBA is returning to tradition this year by utilizing the East vs. West format and abandoning the Final Target Score.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver explained to Andscape’s Marc J. Spears that structuring the All-Star Game like a typical contest will hopefully raise the level of competitiveness.
“When it comes to the [All-Star] Game, we just got to make it clear to everybody involved, coaches included, that we’re looking for a basketball game,” he said.
Fans will find out in a few weeks whether the theory proves correct.