Nikola Jokic rises up voting ranks for the NBA All-Star Game

Nikola Jokic’s hot shooting streak over the last seven games and big-time buzzer-beater against the Golden State Warriors has seemingly won him a few fans. On Thursday, the NBA updated their All-Star Game fan voting and the Denver Nuggets star center has climbed to the second-most votes in the West behind LeBron James.

Jokic, a two-time MVP and the reigning Finals MVP, is currently the frontrunner to win the regular-season award again. The 28-year-old is scoring 25.5 points, throwing 9.2 assists and snagging 11.8 rebounds a night, which is good for 16th, third and fourth-best in the league. His again monster statistical year with the boost of just being a champion has him second only to one of the greatest players of all time in the fan voting, which accounts for half of what decides the game’s starters.

Jokic has made five straight All-Star Games and has started three of them. Alex English and David Thompson were the only Nuggets players before Jokic to be selected to start in consecutive All-Star games and Jokic is already just the second Nuggets player ever to be selected to five or more All-Star games. Even if Jokic makes it this season, English’s eight appearances are still going to take more time for Jokic to get to.

LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo lead their respective conferences in the second fan returns of #NBAAllStar Voting presented by AT&T.

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

Next fan update: 1/18. pic.twitter.com/0K23OtQRmY

— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) January 11, 2024

Most notable with this year’s All-Star Game was the possibility of Joker being joined by fellow Nuggets for the event. Last year, the entire coaching staff coached the game due to them leading the west at the time—that won’t happen this year even if Denver jumps Minny in the standings because league rules won’t allow the same team’s staff coach the game two years in a row. Even two years ago Bones Hyland made the Rising Stars game, maybe Peyton Watson will go this year. But still, as of now, Jokic is the only MVP in NBA history—let alone a two-time one—to never have had a teammate selected to All-Star, All-NBA or All-Defensive team. And that’s probably not going to change with this event given his Nuggets co-star Jamal Murray missed a month and it’s pretty easy to find six guards in the west having a better season than him. While Aaron Gordon’s numbers as third fiddle don’t come near to stacking up with lesser team’s first options that fans have shown more favorability to.

The All-Star Game will be in Indy on Feb. 18, fans can vote until Jan. 20 and the staters will be announced on Jan. 25. The rest of the roster will come out on Feb. 1 and those are selected by head coaches and commissioner Adam Silver.

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