The NBA has revealed results from the first round of All-Star voting and Milwaukee Bucks' forward Giannis Antetokounmpo leads all players with the most votes. In the first 12 days of fan voting, the Greek Freak received 863,416 votes, slightly ahead of LeBron James' 856,080.
Giannis, 23, is looking for his second ever All-Star appearance while LeBron is gunning for his 14th straight.
In the Western Conference, the Golden State Warriors’ Kevin Durant leads with 767,402 votes and teammate Stephen Curry is next with 735,115. According to NBA.com, the next fan voting update will be shared on Thursday, January 11th. Voting will conclude on Monday, January 15th at 11:59 p.m. ET.
Check out the breakdown below.
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This year, the NBA will be switching things up in regards to how the All-Star teams are selected. Most notably, it won't be East vs. West.
According the press release via NBA.com, two captains, one from each conference, will be determined based upon who receives the most fan votes in his conference. Those captains will then draft the 2018 All-Star teams from the pool of players who were voted as starters and reserves, making selections without regard for conference affiliation.
As for the All-Star selection process, things will remain the same.
12 players from each conference will be chosen for the All-Star spots. The 10 starters – two guards and three frontcourt players per conference – will continue to be chosen by a combination of fans (50% of the vote), current players (25%) and basketball media (25%).
The NBA’s head coaches will still select the 14 reserves, voting for two guards, three frontcourt players and two players at any position in their respective conferences. Specific details about the draft will be announced at a later date.
