Over the past five seasons, the Golden State Warriors have dominated NBA All-Star weekend. Whether it’s Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson battling in the three-point shootout or Kevin Durant running the floor with Draymond Green in the All-Star Game, the Warriors have been heavily involved throughout the weekend.
While things have changed with Durant moving to Brooklyn and the Warriors struggling at the bottom of the Western Conference, one thing remains the same— NBA fans still want to see Golden State represented in the All-Star game.
Two Warriors were named in the first round of All-Star voting on Thursday, with Stephen Curry and D’Angelo Russell both ranking in the top-six for Western Conference guards.
The first returns from #VoteNBAAllStar 2020!
Make YOUR vote count twice today by voting here ➡️ https://t.co/VMuxMjeZQO pic.twitter.com/qRzXqLxMti
— NBA (@NBA) January 2, 2020
Curry, who’s only played four games in the 2019-20 season due to injury, ranked fourth amongst Western Conference guards with 191,149 votes. Curry won’t be able to participate in All-Star festivities because of his hand injury, but seeing his name near the top in votes is a nod to the former two-time MVP’s impact across the league.
Curry only trails Luka Doncic, James Harden and Damian Lillard in the West guard voting. Two slots behind Curry is another Warrior backcourt mate, Russell, at 122,499 votes.
Russell has taken on the responsibility of Curry in his first season in Golden State and has impressed. Russell’s averaging 23.2 points and 6.0 assister per game on the season, shooting 43.3 percent from the field— all rank above his career averages.
Injuries have hampered the Ohio State product’s season, causing him to miss 14 games this season. Still, when healthy, the former Brooklyn All-Star has been a tremendous scoring threat for Steve Kerr’s offense. Russell’s registered seven 30-point games on the season, including one 52-point burst against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Yup. D'Angelo Russell is in that zone again. pic.twitter.com/BStrzdigm2
— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) November 10, 2019
Two familiar names were missing from All-Star voting with Thompson and Green, not cracking the top-10 in either forward or guard category. Thompson hasn’t played a game this season as he rehabs from an ACL injury while Green has dealt with his own set of injury concerns throughout 2019.
The Warriors are in a transition year as their core is on the mend with injuries. However, with the early return on voting naming two Dubs, there’s still a chance Golden State is represented at All-Star weekend in Chicago.
All-Star voting continues through January 20, with starters announced January 23, and reserves named January 30.