On Thursday, January 20, the NBA released the results of the third fan vote for the 2023 NBA All-Star Game.
In last week’s fan returns, Lakers superstar LeBron James was ranked second overall but is now the leader in votes, surpassing Warriors superstar Stephen Curry. Nets forward Kevin Durant, who is out indefinitely with a sprained MCL, remains first in the East but leads Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo by less than 400,000 votes.
As in years past, fans will account for 50 percent of the final vote for this year’s All-Star Game. The other 50 percent is made up of current players and a media panel, with each side accounting for 25 percent of the vote.
Voting began on December 25 and ends at 11:59 pm ET on January 22. The All-Star starters will be announced on Thursday, January 27.
VOTE FOR YOUR 2023 NBA ALL-STARS HERE!
The 71st NBA All-Star Game will take place on Sunday, February 20, 2023 at 8:00 pm ET.
About the results…
The results
LeBron James now leads the NBA in the latest fan returns for the NBA All-Star Voting Presented by Tissot, which concludes this Saturday, January 22.
Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, DeMar DeRozan and James continue to be the top vote earners in their respective position groups. pic.twitter.com/LBIU5BamC6
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) January 20, 2023
Top 10 Vote Winners
- LeBron James: 6,287,449
- Stephen Curry-6,019,418
- Kevin Durant—5,496,513
- Giannis Antetokounmpo – 5,124,925
- Nikola Jokic – 4,132,522
- DeMar DeRozan—4,121,034
- Joel Embiid—3,305,229
- Andrew Wiggins-2,644,571
- Ya Morant — 2,623,359
- Paul George — 2,312,248
If the voting ended today, the fan-voted headlines would be…
| Eastern Conference | Western Conference | |
| DeMar DeRozan | guard | Stephen Curry |
| Bring Young | guard | already dwelling |
| Kevin Durant* | front track | Lebron James |
| Giannis Antetokounmpo | front track | Nicholas Jokic |
| Joel Embid | front track | Andrew Wiggins |
injuries
As mentioned above, Durant is out indefinitely with a knee injury, making it unlikely he’ll dress for the 2023 NBA All-Star Game.
If the fan vote ended today, Durant would be the starter and captain for this year’s game. Last season, Durant missed the All-Star Game with a hamstring injury, but he got the most votes. Although he did not attend the game due to COVID-19 protocols, Durant served as captain during the NBA All-Star Draft.
Commissioner Adam Silver selected Celtics forward Jayson Tatum to start in place of Durant and selected Pacers forward Domantas Sabonis to replace Durant through injury. If Durant can’t play, players like Sabonis, Jarrett Allen or Miles Bridges could be designated to step up from the East.
While each of the top three vote winners on the West front is healthy, George, Anthony Davis and Draymond Green are not far behind. Depending on the ways the vote is weighted, each of the three mentioned could still earn a start, despite not being able to participate.
Commissioner Silver would again be tasked with appointing injury replacements.
LeBron James on the cusp of history
In his 19th season, LeBron is on track for an 18th All-Star selection, tying a record for 18th All-Star appearance and 18th All-Star start.
In addition to the previous records, the fact that James surpasses Curry puts him in a position to return to being the leader in obtaining votes. If James ends up leading all players in votes, it will be the ninth time in his career, which would put him right up there with Hall of Famer Michael Jordan for most years as the All-Star vote leader. stars.
Keep an eye out for James’ quest for more history.
The closest races for the starting positions
While Wiggins has created a bigger gap from George in the Western Conference frontcourt, the race for second shooting guard in the Eastern Conference has gotten even tighter.
DeRozan looks poised to earn his fifth career All-Star selection, but the race between Young, Zach LaVine and James Harden is getting too close. Fewer than 200,000 votes separate Young, LaVine and Harden, each of whom is more than worthy of earning a start in this year’s All-Star Game.
With the media and current players ready to cast their votes soon, we could realistically see any of the above three represent the East as a starter.
What has changed and what has not changed
Since the second fan results were released on Thursday, January 13, no new names have entered the top 10 of any position group in either conference.
While no one has been in or out of the top 10, there have been some changes in the Eastern Conference. Among frontcourt players, Raptors forward Pascal Siakam passed Heat center Bam Adebayo as the seventh leader in votes.
Another Raptor, Fred VanVleet, moved up to seventh among shooting guards, passing the Knicks’ Derrick Rose.
also of note
The fan favorites continue to get love.
Carmelo Anthony has surpassed one million votes, taking his spot at seventh in the Western Conference frontcourt. Among guards, Warriors sharpshooter Klay Thompson also passed the 1 million mark. The Warriors (Curry, Wiggins, Thompson and Draymond Green) are the only team with four players receiving at least 1 million votes.
In the East, LaMarcus Aldridge has remained in the top 10, up more than 100,000 votes since the last announcement. Although he was beaten by VanVleet, Rose has counted more votes than Darius Garland and Jaylen Brown.
