There are cream-of-the-crop talents who miss the All-Star game every year. Damian Lillard averaged over 25 and 27 points in the 2016 and 2017 seasons and received no All-Star appearance (but made All-NBA in 2016). Bradley Beal has missed while averaging over 30 a game. Devin Booker has been snubbed a bunch, and Trae Young would argue getting “snubbed” should be called “Trae’d” — the list goes on.
With the talent explosion across the league, this year will be no different. Guys who are first options leading their teams to success could be at home come February; it’s inevitable.
The outcry over how broken the All-Star Game has caused another shift. There will be a USA vs the World round-robin thing going on, and at least eight international players will make the game of the 24 players.
We’re still doing East vs West pools initially; the fans (it’s surprising this year), media, and players still vote to get the starters, and the coaches still pick the reserves. Adam Silver will add international or American players to meet the threshold. The game is positionless now as well. We’ll see how these changes affect the roster.
For us to predict the snubs, we need to predict who’ll make the game, too. These are my projected All-Stars at the beginning of January.
Predicted 2026 All-Star rosters
West
- G - Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (World)
- G - Luka Dončić (World)
- C - Nikola Jokić (World)
- C - Alperen Şengün (World)
- G - Anthony Edwards (American)
- G - Steph Curry (American)
- F - Kevin Durant (American)
- F - Deni Avdija (World)
- F - Kawhi Leonard (American)
- F - Victor Wembanyama (World)
- G - Devin Booker (American)
- G - Jamal Murray (World)
East
- F - Giannis Antetokounmpo (World)
- G - Cade Cunningham (American)
- G - Jalen Brunson (American)
- G - Donovan Mitchell (American)
- F - Jaylen Brown (American)
- G - Tyrese Maxey (American)
- F - Scottie Barnes (American)
- F - Jalen Johnson (American)
- G - Norman Powell (American)
- F - Michael Porter Jr. (American)
- C - Jalen Duren (American)
- C - Karl-Anthony Towns (American)
I pinky-promise I didn't purposely get exactly eight World players on the ballot. Two World guys are dealing with injuries that would've made this experiment funky if they were healthy. We'll get to them later. LeBron James not getting a spot on my roster and the fan vote is the bigger story.
Predicted 2026 All-Star snubs
LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers
Key Stats: 21.7 PPG | 6.8 APG
Yeah, I get it too, seeing an All-Star list without the arguable greatest player of all time seems like blasphemy. Don't blame me, blame yourself.
After the second All-Star vote return, James is still eighth in the West; he's behind Deni Avdija. James is clearly a more recognizable name, but Deni is having the better, more available season (18 games vs 38), and fans have voted as such. If James doesn't move up in the fan vote, he'll need the coaches to vote him in as a reserve.
Would coaches take away a spot from a more deserving All-Star? It's possible, but we might as well let James in for Jokić as a replacement. Joker will miss a few more weeks with that hyperextended knee; he doesn't strike me as a guy who will rush back to play in the ASG. That's LeBron James' path to making his 22nd consecutive ASG if Silver chooses to replace a World player with an American. There'd still need to be eight World players, but they'll figure it out to get James in. His teammate won't get the same treatment.
Austin Reaves, Los Angeles Lakers
Key stats: 26.6 PPG | 6.3 APG | 67 TS%
Reaves was a lock when I did this exercise in December. His efficiency and self-creation are off the charts — a 67 true shooting percentage is comical for a mid-range heavy guard. Reaves' improvement as a creator for others was noticeable, especially in his minutes without Luka and James.
Unfortunately for Reaves, the West is deep, and his absence hasn't made things better. He's been out since Christmas, and that's enough ammo to stop the Lakers from getting three (?) All-Stars. Injuries halting a career year sucks, and two World creators in the East won't be named All-Stars initially because of them.
Franz Wagner, Orlando Magic
Key stats: 22.7 PPG | 6.1 RPG | 60 TS%
"Who's the Magic's best player? They should break up Paolo Banchero and Franz." My hands rush to my ears when I hear this premature talk. Orlando has two All-Star caliber players under 25 who've made the playoffs together, let them build.
Franz was on his way to making his first All-Star game. The Magic are a more cohesive unit with him in the lineup, and his jumper has returned a bit. Wagner was shooting 37 percent from deep over his last 10 games before he got hurt. He's appeared in 24 of the 38 Magic games. He was on his way.
Josh Giddey, Chicago Bulls
Key stats: 19.2 PPG | 8.9 RPG | 9.0 APG
Talk about triple-double watch. Josh Giddey is a threat in that department every night. Along with his monstrous assists and rebounding figures, Giddey was shooting nearly 39 percent on nearly five 3-point attempts a game. Finishing and shooting were always swing skills that could take Giddey from solid to a star.
The finishing can get there, but this is the second season in a row he's been respectable from 3. The Bulls aren't good, but they are way better with the Australian jumbo creator running the show. He was having a moment. He's played in 30 games so far, and might be back in time to be an injury reserve. Somebody will miss this ASG; they always do.
Chet Holmgren, Oklahoma City Thunder
Key stats: 18.2 PPG | 1.8 BPG | 67 TS%
A team that reached 30 wins before 10 losses usually gets at least two All-Stars. Jalen Williams was the Thunder's second All-Star last year. He missed lots of time and frankly hasn’t been at that level.
Chet Holmgren has arguably always been OKC's second-most impactful player, but playing in the West is no joke. His counting stats don’t scream lock him in, and OKC's recent skid has many questioning the offensive help around SGA. Holmgren could very well win defensive player of the year, but he wouldn’t be an All-Star this season if it were up to me.
James Harden, Los Angeles Clippers
Key stats: 25.6 PPG | 8 APG | 61 TS%
The level 36-year-old James Harden is playing at is nothing short of sensational. He’s averaging the most points since his legendary Rockets days.
His all-star candidacy comes down to him vs Clippers teammate Kawhi Leonard, ironically enough. It’s not entirely either of their fault that the Clippers are 13-23, but a team with that record can’t get two all-stars.
Harden's insane playmaking and creating versus Kawhi’s inferno shotmaking and efficiency. Take your pick, but the Clippers are only getting one.
Lauri Markkanen and Keyonte George, Utah Jazz
Key stats (Markkanen): 28 PPG | 7 RPG | 62 TS%
Key stats (George): 24.3 PPG | 7 APG | 90 FT%
The Utah Jazz also have two All-Star-caliber players. The West is so loaded, I couldn’t comfortably find a spot for either of these assassins.
Keyonte George’s growth as an on-ball creator needs to be studied and presented to a class at Harvard. He couldn’t get by a soul last year, but has turned into a fire-cracking dynamic driver. He’s my Most Improved Player currently.
Lauri Markkanen won that award before and was named an All-Star, too. He has a shot to make it again as a World representative. If the World team needs a name, a Lauri selection wouldn't receive pushback from the masses, as he’s been one of the best 7-foot snipers.
More snubs
Julius Randle is a helluva ball player and transforms his game when needed. He's on the ball less than he was during his time in New York, but remains an impactful player.
I said Holmgren could win DPOY, but Rudy Gobert would be the favorite if he didn't already have four. Gobert is holding down the paint without fouling once again. He's anchoring the fifth-best defense (112.5 DRTG), but that defense falls off a cliff with him off the floor (123.1). That's All-Star level impact.
De'Aaron Fox deserves a shout. He's been steady with players in and out of the lineup in San Antonio. His shotmaking from all over the floor aids the Spurs' offensive attack. They aren't the two seed out West without him.
Brandon Ingram is our last name here. He's the Raptors' go-to scorer, and he brings a ton of juice to their half-court offense. I didn't want to give Toronto two and went the Scottie route due to his playmaking, creating, and defensive versatility. Everybody named in this piece could ultimately make it, but there will be snubs, so get ready.