The early returns on the voting for the All-Star game are in. LeBron James leads all players with 552,967 votes, followed closely by Stephen Curry (549,095 votes), Anthony Davis (524,623 votes) and, of course, Kobe Bryant (521,542). A lot of familiar names stand out near the top both in the guard and frontcourt positions in both conferences. The teams will be comprised of two guards and three frontcourt players.
LeBron James, Stephen Curry lead early All-Star voting returns
LeBron James lead all players in voting, and Anthony Davis could be a starter for the first time.
Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
At this point, the starters would be:
Eastern Conference
G: John Wall
G: Dwyane Wade
F: LeBron James
F: Pau Gasol
Western Conference
G: Stephen Curry
G: Kobe Bryant
F: Anthony Davis
F: Marc Gasol
The only spot that seems in real danger is Wade’s, as Kyrie Irving trails him by less than 30,000 votes. The rest of the players have bigger buffers between them and their immediate pursuers.
As for the selection of the starters, the voters got most of it right. Wall has had a breakout season, Wade is putting up great numbers and you can't ever go wrong with LeBron James. There's a case to be made for Chris Bosh over Pau Gasol but the Bulls have been better than the Heat and Gasol's offensive renaissance has been a big reason why. Carmelo Anthony is the only questionable choice, as he's been battling injuries and his numbers are down compared to last season's.
Over at the West, what immediately stands out is people still love Kobe Bryant. Kobe has been chucking shots at career-high levels with a career-low efficiency. Obviously part of his struggles are related to subpar teammates but Bryant doesn't deserve to star over James Harden, a viable MVP candidate leading the Rockets to a 20-7 record despite Dwight Howard missing time with injury. It's hard to argue against any of the other starters, since Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook have both missed time.
Voting will continue until Jan. 19. To cast your vote, go to NBA.com/asb
Full list of players:
Eastern Conference
Frontcourt:
1. LeBron James (Cle) 552,967
2. Carmelo Anthony (NYK) 265,170
3. Pau Gasol (Chi) 247,953
4. Chris Bosh (Mia) 208,549
5. Kevin Love (Cle) 169,818
6. Joakim Noah (Chi) 69,994
7. Marcin Gortat (Was) 57,715
8. Jonas Valanciunas (Tor) 52,318
9. Kevin Garnett (BKN) 46,494
10. Al Jefferson (Cha) 43,230
11. Paul Pierce (Was) 35,197
12. Nikola Vucevic (Orl) 33,296
13. Paul Millsap (Atl) 21,545
14. Amar’e Stoudemire (NYK) 20,602
15. Andre Drummond (Det) 19,128
Guards:
1. John Wall (Was) 299,209
2. Dwyane Wade (Mia) 265,917
3. Kyrie Irving (Cle) 237,356
4. Kyle Lowry (Tor) 182,896
5. Derrick Rose (Chi) 105,465
6. Jimmy Butler (Chi) 99,984
7. DeMar DeRozan (Tor) 51,946
8. Giannis Antetokounmpo (Mil) 17,512
9. Louis Williams (Tor) 15,329
10. Bradley Beal (Was) 13,911
Western Conference
Frontcourt:
1. Anthony Davis (NO) 524,623
2. Blake Griffin (LAC) 307,908
3. Marc Gasol (Mem) 227,554
4. Tim Duncan (SA) 198,649
5. Kevin Durant (OKC) 191,881
6. LaMarcus Aldridge (Por) 152,253
7. DeMarcus Cousins (Sac) 117,003
8. Dwight Howard (Hou) 104,699
9. Dirk Nowitzki (Dal) 100,015
10. Kawhi Leonard (SA) 74,501
11. Rudy Gay (Sac) 51,873
12. DeAndre Jordan (LAC) 43,051
13. Nick Young (LAL) 32,050
14. Tyson Chandler (Dal) 31,659
15. Zach Randolph (Mem) 30.147
Guards:
1. Stephen Curry (GS) 549,095
2. Kobe Bryant (LAL) 521,542
3. James Harden (Hou) 336,998
4. Chris Paul (LAC) 257,528
5. Rajon Rondo (Dal) 107,366
6. Klay Thompson (GS) 90,957
7. Russell Westbrook (OKC) 84,686
8. Damian Lillard (Por) 82,884
9. Jeremy Lin (LAL) 77,276
10. Tony Parker (SA) 50,287
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