NBA All-Star Game: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic, Jayson Tatum lead vote-getters in early results

On January 3, 2025By Littum

Boston, MA - March 14: Boston Celtics SF Jayson Tatum is defended by Phoenix Suns PF Kevin Durant in the fourth quarter. The Celtics beat the Suns, 127-112. (Photo by Danielle Parhizkaran/The Boston Globe via Getty Images) — Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum and Phoenix Suns Kevin Durant rank third and fourth, respectively, in early NBA All-Star voting (Photo by Danielle Parhizkaran/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

The NBA released the early returns on the All-Star fan vote on Thursday, and Giannis Antetokounmpo is the leading vote-getter so far.

The Milwaukee Bucks star has received 1,710,630 votes to lead the total voting. Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić is the top player among Western Conference stars with 1,422,121 votes.

Nikola Jokić and Giannis Antetokounmpo lead their respective conferences in first-team returns #NBAAllStar Poll presented by AT&T.

Fans account for 50% of the vote to determine All-Star starters. NBA players and a media panel each account for 25%.

Next fan update: 1/9. pic.twitter.com/OoIIa3S3fn

— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) 2 January 2025

Other players who received a million or more votes are Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (1,385,851), Kevin Durant of the Phoenix Suns (1,268,799), Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James (1,167,661), New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (1,099,966) and Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (1,053,683).

Lakers forward Anthony Davis (999,540), Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball (947,444) and San Antonio Spurs sensation Victor Wembanyama (928,501) round out the top 10 among top All-Star votes. The second wave of voting results will be published on 9 January.

Starters for the 2025 NBA All-Star Game will be announced on January 23, while the game will be played on February 16 at San Francisco’s Chase Center, home of the Golden State Warriors. The All-Star reserves, chosen by the league’s 30 head coaches, will be revealed on January 30.

Antetokounmpo leads the NBA in scoring with 32.6 points per game. game and fifth with 11.6 rebounds. Jokić ranks third with 30.7 points, while his 13 rebounds per game is third and his 9.7 assists rank him second among NBA players.

The name that may appear among the top vote-getters is Ball. In his fifth season, the Hornets guard is averaging 30.1 points per game. match. That would be fourth among the leading NBA scorers. But Ball has appeared in just 22 games after suffering a left calf strain on Nov. 27.

Only Gilgeous-Alexander, who is second in NBA scoring at 31.3 points per game, has more votes among NBA guards than Ball. That includes Dallas Mavericks star Luka Dončić (870,071 votes) and Warriors standout Stephen Curry (810,357). Among Eastern Conference guards, Ball has nearly 230,000 more votes than five-time All-Star Donovan Mitchell (718,084) of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The 2025 NBA All-Star Game will introduce a new tournament-style format in hopes of creating a more competitive contest for their midseason showcase. Instead of an East vs. West game, All-Star Sunday will feature a tournament with four teams consisting of eight players each.

Three of the teams will consist of the 24 players selected as All-Stars. TNT’s Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’ Neal and Kenny Smith will draft the rosters for these teams, which will be held on February 6th. The fourth team will win the Feb. 14 Rising Stars Challenge featuring first- and second-year NBA players with G. League standouts. (The All-Star tournament follows the format used in the Rising Stars Challenge.)