OKC Thunder: International flavor highlights NBA All-Star initial results

Initial NBA All-Star Game fan vote results highlight an international flavor of rising stars but an unfortunate absence of OKC Thunder players in the mix.

With the recent success of the OKC Thunder, there were hopes the initial fan vote results would reflect that. Unfortunately, that’s not the case so there is work to be done.

In perhaps a first sign of the next wave moving up to seize the throne and crown from LeBron James two young stars are leading the initial run of votes. In the Eastern Conference, Giannis Antetokounmpo tops the votes and is second only to top vote getter Luka Doncic who leads in the Western Conference over LeBron.

All three stars received more than a million votes.

As per recent changes to the vote process fans account for 50 percent of the vote with the media and players representing 25 percent each.

The game this year is in Chicago at the United Center the home of the Bulls. The three-day event runs from February 14th through 16th with the rookies and sophomores playing in the Rising Stars Game on Friday, State Farm All-Star Saturday Night on February 15th and the main event on Sunday, February 16th.

As for where the votes landed here are the leaders and vote count from the initial run:

Eastern Conference:

The biggest surprise in the East is the cult-like following of Tacko Fall in Boston landing him in the sixth spot for the frontcourt and Kyrie Irving second in guard votes despite missing over 20 games.

Western Conference:

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You’ll note not one of the OKC Thunder players made the cut in either the frontcourt or backcourt. While it’s reasonable to see superstars on the list like the Lakers duo it’s a little head scratching to see players like Alex Caruso and as good as he is rookie Ja Morant on the list ahead of any of the Thunder guards.

Surely we can pull together as a fan base and send Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to his first All-Star Game or at worst get him on the list of top 10.

Chris Paul is another star who has played well enough to merit inclusion and even Dennis Schroder has played better than many names on the list.

Both Danilo Gallinari and Steven Adams deserve nods over players like Dwight Howard and Carmelo Anthony.

The next vote results will be announced on January 9th and 16th with voting open until January 20th.  After fan voting is complete the media and players’ votes will be factored in with the starters announced on NBA Game Time via TNT on January 23rd. Then the head coaches will do their part of the process selecting the reserves which will be announced on January 30th.

Come on Thunder Nation – let’s step up and get this done.