NBA Roundtable: Picking 2024 All-Star starters

National Basketball Association

Updated Jan. 16, 2024 7:08 p.m. ET

Voting for the 2024 NBA All-Star Game is underway and LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo currently have the most fan votes. However, as of 2017, fans only account for 50% of the vote, with player and media voting evenly accounting for the remaining 50%.

Additionally, the 2024 NBA All-Star Game will return to the East vs. West format after experimenting with an All-Star draft in each of the last six editions.

This week, we asked FOX Sports’ panel of NBA reporters — Ric Bucher, Melissa Rohlin and Yaron Weitzman — to choose their NBA All-Star starters for both conferences.

Yaron Weitzman’s picks

EAST

Backcourt: Tyrese Haliburton, Tyrese Maxey

Frontcourt:Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jayson Tatum

The frontcourt slots, to me, are no-brainers. Embiid and Giannis are playing at MVP levels and Tatum, the best player on the league’s best team, has, per usual, been elite on both ends of the floor. Haliburton — leading the league in assists and shooting 50% from the field and 41% from deep for the in-the-playoff-picture-Pacers — has to be a lock, too. The final guard spot is a tough call — that slot could easily go to Jalen Brunson or Damian Lillard. There’s no wrong answer between the three, but for now I’m going with Maxey because the Sixers‘ net rating with him on the floor has been better than the Knicks‘ with Brunson, and because he’s been a more efficient offensive player than Lillard.

WEST

Backcourt:Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luka Doncic

Frontcourt:Nikola Jokic, Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Durant

The backcourt choices here are easy for me, and Jokic is obvious. The last two frontcourt positions, however, are difficult to choose — LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Rudy Gobert all have strong cases. For me, the Lakers‘ poor record means I can bump their two stars. And as fantastic as Gobert has been this season, I just don’t think that matches up to the two-way brilliance of Kawhi and Durant.

Melissa Rohlin’s picks

EAST

Backourt: Tyrese Haliburton, Jalen Brunson

Frontcourt: Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jayson Tatum

Antetokounmpo, Embiid and Tatum were obvious choices. They’re each MVP contenders, and they’re playing for three of the top teams in the league. As for Haliburton and Brunson, they slightly edged out Tyrese Maxey, Donovan Mitchell and Damian Lillard. Haliburton is having a breakout season and is leading the league in assists per game (12.5). As for Brunson, he was snubbed for the 2023 All-Star team but should be a starter this time around. He’s averaging 25.8 points on an extremely efficient 46.9 percent shooting from the field, 42.4 percent from beyond the arc and 6.4 assists a game, helping the Knicks become a team to watch out for this season.

WEST

Backcourt: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luka Doncic

Frontcourt: Nikola Jokic, Kevin Durant, LeBron James

In the West, Gilgeous-Alexander, Doncic and Jokic were the no-brainers. James gets the nod even though the Lakers are struggling, sitting in 10th place in the Western Conference. He’s doing things that are absolutely unprecedented for a 39-year-old in his 21st season in the league. How’s this for perspective? No player has averaged more than 7.4 points in their 21st season. James is averaging 24.7 points on 52.1 percent shooting, 7.2 rebounds and 7.6 assists. It was hard not to have anyone from Minnesota on this team, considering they’re the top team in the West. But neither Anthony Edwards or Rudy Gobert edges out anyone on this list in my book.

Ric Bucher’s picks

EAST

Backourt: Tyrese Haliburton, Jalen Brunson

Frontcourt: Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jayson Tatum

It feels as if the frontcourt might not, short of a trade, change for the next few years. I don’t put Tatum in the same category as Giannis and Joel, but the most productive player on the team with the best record has to be recognized. Haliburton and Brunson get the nod over Tyrese Maxey and Damian Lillard for similar reasons — both carry far more responsibility than either of the other two, neither has a superstar big next to him and both are just as efficient and productive, if not more so.

WEST

Backcourt: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luka Doncic

Frontcourt: Nikola Jokic, Anthony Davis, Domantas Sabonis

I hate to leave Anthony Edwards out of the starting lineup and the team currently with the best record in the West unrepresented in the first five, but sometimes it goes that way. I couldn’t go with Rudy Gobert because he’s a defensive star; I couldn’t go with Kevin Durant because he’s an offensive star these days. (Yes, I know Doncic’s D is suspect, but he isn’t an offensive star, he’s an offensive maestro.) Kawhi Leonard and Paul George have been healthy and productive, but they’re not doing what Sabonis is in Sacramento. For those who haven’t been paying attention, he’s doing it all — playmaking from the high post, scoring with efficiency and leading the league in rebounding. The Kings have been up and down this season, but Sabonis has not — 29 double-doubles in 33 starts.

Yaron Weitzman is an NBA writer for FOX Sports. He is the author of “Tanking to the Top: The Philadelphia 76ers and the Most Audacious Process in the History of Professional Sports.” Follow him on Twitter @YaronWeitzman.

Melissa Rohlin is an NBA writer for FOX Sports. She previously covered the league for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Times, the Bay Area News Group and the San Antonio Express-News. Follow her on Twitter @melissarohlin.

Ric Bucher is an NBA writer for FOX Sports. He previously wrote for Bleacher Report, ESPN The Magazine and The Washington Post and has written two books, “Rebound,” on NBA forward Brian Grant’s battle with young onset Parkinson’s, and “Yao: A Life In Two Worlds.” He also has a daily podcast, “On The Ball with Ric Bucher.” Follow him on Twitter @RicBucher.

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