The NBA on Thursday unveiled the captains and starters from each conference for the 2023 NBA All-Star Game on Feb. 19 in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James led all players in fan voting to represent the Western Conference while Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo was the lead vote-getter in the Eastern Conference. The two players will serve as captains and select their teams right before the start of the All-Star Game for the first time.
Joining James as the starters in the Western Conference are Nikola Jokic (Denver), Zion Williamson (New Orleans), Stephen Curry (Golden State) and Luka Doncic (Dallas). In the Eastern Conference, the other starters were Kevin Durant (Brooklyn), Jayson Tatum (Boston), Kyrie Irving (Brooklyn) and Donovan Mitchell (Cleveland).
⭐️ THE 2023 NBA ALL-STAR GAME STARTERS ⭐️ pic.twitter.com/9NXxjaYfW0
— ESPN (@espn) January 27, 2023
Fans accounted for 50% of the vote to determine the starters. Current players and a panel of media members accounted for 25% of the vote each. After all of the votes were tallied, players were ranked in each conference by position (guard and frontcourt).
Though no first-year player was named a starter, Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero finished eighth in fan voting with 584,752 votes. He could still be voted a reserve by the coaches of the NBA, but he faces an uphill battle: There hasn’t been a rookie named an All-Star since 2011.
There was a smattering of other rookies that received votes from fans and other players. Most of them have appeared in a game this season and logged some playing time at one point or another.
With an exception: Oklahoma City Thunder forward Chet Holmgren.
Four NBA players voted Chet Holmgren, who has yet to play in an NBA game, as an All-Star starter.
— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) January 27, 2023
Of course, the No. 2 pick suffered a Lisfranc injury in his right foot prior to the start of the season and was ruled out of playing. He is progressing in his rehabilitation and is expected to make a full recovery and be ready to play at the start of next season.
The All-Star voting results from each year can often have some rather interesting results, and Thursday’s returns proved no different. It will be worth watching how the coaches vote on the reserves, which will be unveiled on Feb. 2.
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