NBA All-Star starters were announced, and Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic was the top vote-getter, receiving over 3 million fan votes. With Luka’s rise in popularity fans have decided to take a sharp turn and abandon King James who did not make the All-Star squad for the first time in 21 seasons. Together, Luka and LeBron led the Lakers on a late 16-0 run after trailing by 14 at the half and stormed back to clip the Denver Nuggets 115-107 on Tuesday night.
Luka Doncic Gets Most 2026 NBA All-Star Votes From Fans
Three voting groups determined the starters for the 2026 NBA All-Star Game: Fans (50%), NBA players (25%), Media panel (25%).
On Tuesday, Doncic had a 38-13-10 triple double and King James added 19 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. He was +13 for the game. The most impressive part of Luka’s week is the fact that the voting proves that he is the most popular player in the NBA right now on a global scale. Moving to Los Angeles to play with LeBron James hasn’t hurt Luka’s popularity at all. In fact, he’s gone from a wildly popular guy to a guy who is resonating the most with a new generation of NBA fans.
NBA All-Star Game Starters — Western Conference
- Luka Dončić, Lakers (sixth selection)
- Stephen Curry, Warriors (12th)
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder (fourth)
- Nikola Jokić, Nuggets (eighth)
- Victor Wembanyama, Spurs (second)
NBA All-Star Game Starters — Eastern Conference
- Tyrese Maxey, 76ers (second selection)
- Jalen Brunson, Knicks (third)
- Cade Cunningham, Pistons (second)
- Jaylen Brown, Celtics (fifth)
- Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bucks (10th)
Here are the results of the fan, player and media voting to determine starters in both conferences. There’s clearly a disconnect between what the fans think and what the players think and what the media thinks, but that’s why they all get a vote. They are analyzing the game from different perspectives and personal feelings always play a part in these things to an extent.
Fans Vote Luka Doncic, Players and Media Vote Different
The fans love Luka, but among players, however, Luka finished sixth, which enraged some folks on social media.
“Players voting Luka 6th should be enough to remove them from this in the future,” one fan said.
“Players didnt consider luka a starter. Enough said, another replied.
“The players are retards. Luka is better than everyone except maybe Jokic,” a third fan complained.
“They deadass voted Luka 6th jealous ahh hoes,” a Lakers and Luka fan quipped.
“Clear jealousy from players to Luka. Clearly evident. Old players like Jeff Teague hate him and even older players like James worthy hate him… niggas been hating on bro since day 1 (Rashad Phillips who had to thankfully stop scouting prospects becuz of early Luka hate),” another fan ranted.
International Fans Clash With Media and Players
Younger fans want the younger, newer stars to be at the forefront of the league. The NBA has bent over backwards to promote international stars, award them with multiple MVPs, while pushing narratives that the youth in America aren’t developing like players overseas. Let’s also remember that many of these new NBA fans do not reside, or were not birthed, within the confines of the United States. The rising popularity of international stars has also helped to shift and expand the NBA’s fanbase. And they tend to be more active than American voters when it comes to these kinds of awards.
For instance, in the Eastern Conference voting, fans voted Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo the top player in the conference, the media chose Boston Celtics forward Jaylen Brown, and the players chose Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham. That’s a huge difference of opinion, but it doesn’t affect the results on the court in any way. All-Star festivities should be a time where fans debate votes and get a chance to see their favorite players “bs” around for a couple hours on All-Star Sunday.
Then those same fans will get on social media and complain about the game and how the players looked disinterested. Book it.
