Fans disappointed Jalen Brunson.
Brunson was voted out over Tyrese Haliburton and Damian Lillard for the two starting spots in the 2024 NBA All-Star Game, largely because fans, who accounted for 50 percent of the final tally, chose the Knicks point guard as the Eastern He was ranked fifth among backcourt players in the conference.
TNT broadcast the results on Thursday, saying Brunson and Lillard were tied for second place, but Lillard won the tiebreaker because of the top fan votes.
TNT analyst Charles Barkley was enthusiastic about Brunson.
“I'm never going to throw any shade at Damian Lillard,” Barkley said. “But I think I would have liked to have seen Jalen Brunson become the starter. I can't believe how great a player he's become. When he went to the Knicks last year, I was like, 'Great deal.' Said. It ended up being one of the best contracts I've ever seen as a free agent. ”
Brunson certainly earned the respect of the media, taking 25 percent of the votes and ranking second among guards in the Eastern Conference.
He finished third in player voting representing the remaining 25 percent.
Brunson could and likely will play in his first All-Star Game as a reserve, but that will be decided by the coaches and announced later.
The Knicks haven't had an All-Star starter since Carmelo Anthony in 2016, and that record will continue unless either Haliburton or Lillard gets injured.
Julius Randle also has an All-Star reserve candidate, but he doesn't get a chance to start in the frontcourt, instead signing Giannis Antetokounmpo, Joel Embiid and Jayson Tatum.
Brunson, who averaged 26.6 points and 6.5 assists Thursday, was largely overlooked.
He received 1,452,519 fan votes, finishing behind Haliburton in first place, Trae Young in second place, Lillard in third place, Donovan Mitchell in fourth place, and Tyrese Maxey in fifth place.
It's an odd result for a player from a major market, but fan voting is global and Brunson, for whatever reason, doesn't have wide international appeal.
“Honestly, not even the Knicks expected him to be this good,” Barkley said on the air shortly after the announcement. “They thought he would be an upgrade. He made the New York Knicks relevant for the first time since Patrick Ewing.”
Lillard, a future Hall of Famer, has struggled this season by his standards, finishing fifth in media polls.
Lillard, the Bucks' second-best player (behind Antetokounmpo), is averaging his fewest points per game (25.3) since the 2019-20 season.
Knicks fans, especially on social media, have recently been campaigning to defend Brunson against national media narratives that he is not a “1A star” or is too short to lead the team to a championship. .
However, not that many fans voted for Brunson.
“The tough thing about the All-Star Game is there are a lot of players who have had great years and are very deserving,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. “That's why it's fun to discuss it with everyone.”
The Western Conference starters are LeBron James, Nikola Jokic, Kevin Durant, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Luka Doncic.
