It should not come as a surprise that LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers and Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks top the roster of starters for the 2024 NBA All-Star Game. According to fan votes, both athletes were in the lead for their respective conferences.
James attains the milestone of 20 All-Star appearances for the first time in league history, establishing himself as the pioneer in this regard. This season, Antetokounmpo is making his eighth appearance on the All-Star team.
The league announced the ten All-Star starters on Thursday night during the TNT NBA Tip-Off. Representing the Western Conference in Indianapolis, Luka Doncic (fourth appearance), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (second appearance), Kevin Durant (14th appearance), and Nikola Jokic (sixth appearance) will commence alongside James.
In addition to Tyrese Haliburton (second appearance), Damian Lillard (eighth appearance), Jayson Tatum (fifth appearance), and Joel Embiid (seventh appearance), four other Eastern Conference players will start in the All-Star Game this year. Haliburton makes his inaugural All-Star Game appearance in front of the home crowd of the Indiana Pacers.
In the ClutchPoints All-Star starters predictions, New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson, who placed second in the media vote for Eastern Conference backcourt players, was predicted to start.
Following an experimentation phase involving the two-captain draft format for the All-Star Game, the NBA has reverted to its traditional East versus West rivalry. The last time this format was utilized was in New Orleans for the 2017 NBA All-Star Game.
All three All-Star starters from this season placed in the top three of fan-voted rankings for their respective positions. The fan vote comprised fifty percent of the overall ballot regarding a player’s likelihood of being named a starter for the current season. The remaining twenty-five percent was contributed by players and a media panel.
On Thursday, February 1, the remaining seven All-Star reserve berths in the Western and Eastern Conferences will be unveiled live during TNT NBA Tip-Off.
