LeBron's most remarkable streak is finally coming to an end

The last time LeBron James wasn't an NBA All-Star, he was a 19-year-old rookie, Steph Curry and Kevin Durant were still in high school and Kevin Garnett was the reigning MVP — for the Timberwolves. He's been selected as an All-Star for the past 21 seasons, an unprecedented feat ... that could be about to end.

NBA players can make an All-Star roster in one of three ways. The first is to be voted in as one of the five starters for each conference, with a voting formula that counts the fan vote for 50 percent, and players and media with 25 percent respectively. The second way is to be selected as one of the seven reserves for your conference on ballots submitted by the 30 head coaches. The third is to be named as an injury replacement for another All-Star, which is common and one of the reasons there are frequently more than 24 All-Stars per season.

The NBA just announced the first fan voting returns and LeBron James is ranked ninth in the West, well outside the range of the starters.

There is still plenty of time for him to catch up — fan voting doesn't end until Jan. 14. And it's possible that the vote share from players and media could push him into starter territory. But the fact that he's currently ninth, is noteworthy.

LeBron finished second in the fan voting for frontcourt players last season, with over 3.3 million votes. (The voting is positionless for the first time this season). He finished first in the fan vote in 2024, and was first in fan votes among all players in either conference from 2016 (when Kobe Bryant retired, through 2023. He is not the player he was in his prime, but that hasn't really been reflected in the All-Star voting until now.

Could LeBron James make the All-Star team as a reserve?

Even if LeBron doesn't make it in as a starter, a spot as a reserve is still on the table. But the problem is the NBA's new format limits the number of slots open to him. In theory, he could take any one of the seven reserve slots in the West. But this season, the 24 All-Stars are going to be divided into three teams of eight — two of American players and one of international players.

Technically, that doesn't limit the number of spots, per ESPN:

"The league answered another lingering question -- what happens if those 24 players do not evenly break down into 16 American and eight international players? Or would the league force the voting to adhere to those numbers? The solution is that if the player pool doesn't reflect that 16-8 split, NBA commissioner Adam Silver will name extra players to the roster to get to the minimum 16 Americans or the minimum eight international players."

But that split might factor into the decision-making process of the coaches. And that could squeeze LeBron.

If we assume the current fan voting holds for the starters, we'd have Luka Dončić (SLO), Nikola Jokić (SRB), Stephen Curry (USA), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (CAN) and Victor Wembanyama (FRA) for the West and Giannis Antetokounmpo (GRE), Jalen Brunson (USA), Tyrese Maxey (USA), Cade Cunningham (USA) and Donovan Mitchell (USA).

That leaves three more slots for international players and 11 more for American players as reserves are chosen. It's not unrealistic that all three of those international slots would be taken by Western Conference players like Alperen Şengün (ISR), Deni Avdija (TUR) and Jamal Murray (CAN). That means LeBron could be up against Anthony Edwards, Kevin Durant, Austin Reaves, Devin Booker, Lauri Markkanen, Jimmy Butler, Chet Holmgren and James Harden for four spots. He carries a weighty legacy, but that's far from a guarantee.

Beyond that, he'd need another international player like Franz Wagner (GER) or Josh Giddey (AUS) to sneak onto the East roster, opening up another spot for an American player regardless of conference. But in that case, LeBron would again be competing against not just whoever else gets left out of that West pool, but also fringe All-Stars in the East like Norman Powell, Brandon Ingram or OG Anunoby.

LeBron James really needs fans to save his All-Star streak

LeBron's numbers are solid this year — 20.5 points, 6.7 assists and 4.9 rebounds per game — but well down from even last season. He's also played only 14 games thus far after missing the beginning of the season with a nerve issue. However, he's still made the All-Star game in down years before. He was voted in every year from 2019 through 2023, despite only playing in 60+ games once during that stretch. But in every case, it was the fan vote that saved him, locking him in as a starter before the more critical eyes of media, opponents and coaches had a chance to weigh in.

It looks like he won't have that advantage this year, and it could be enough to end one of the most remarkable streaks in league history.

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