Among Western Conference frontcourt players, Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun remains sixth in 2024 All-Star fan voting, according to Thursday’s voting update from the NBA.
Sengun is the only Houston player in the top 10 of fan voting for either frontcourt or backcourt players in the West.
The frontcourt players ahead of Sengun are future Hall of Famers: LeBron James and Anthony Davis of the Los Angeles Lakers; Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets; Kevin Durant of the Phoenix Suns; and Kawhi Leonard of the Los Angeles Clippers.
Sengun is within approximately 24,000 votes of Leonard for fifth place; that gap has narrowed in recent updates.
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
The fan vote accounts for half of the voting that will eventually determine 2024 All-Star starters. Players make up 25%, as does a panel of media members. Since only three frontcourt players start, Sengun is a longshot to earn that honor. He already trails Durant — third in frontcourt fan voting — by more than two million votes.
However, Sengun could still qualify as a reserve. All 30 NBA head coaches are given a ballot to select three frontcourt players, two backcourt players, and two wild-card picks from each conference.
If selected, a reserve could become a starter this year, should one of the starters be injured or choose not to participate. The 2024 NBA All-Star Game will be held on Feb. 18 in Indianapolis.
Just 21 years old and in his third NBA season, Sengun is averaging 21.5 points (53.6% FG), 9 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 1.2 steals in 32.3 minutes. As a team, Houston (19-21) is slightly overachieving relative to its win-loss record expectations, and that could bolster the All-Star case for its best player during a breakout campaign.
Fan voting for 2024 NBA All-Stars continues through Saturday, which makes this the last update until final totals are revealed later this month. Details on how to vote are available here.
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