OKLAHOMA CITY — Karl-Anthony Towns' jump on the market for All-Star voting didn't go unnoticed by his teammates.
“KAT, can you tell the difference between New York and Minnesota?” Josh Hart said Friday morning before the Knicks' 117-107 loss to the Thunder. “There's a million difference.”
Towns, who had 17 points and 22 rebounds in the loss, received approximately 1.1 million votes in the first round of fan All-Star voting, third most in the East behind Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jayson Tatum. It was a vote.
Last year with the Timberwolves, Towns received just 139,642 votes in the first round of fan voting.
In other words, it's not quite 1 million, but it's close enough.
“It's a geographical difference,” Towns, a four-time All-Star but never a starter, told Hart.
Another difference is that Towns' stats have skyrocketed this season with the Knicks. He entered Friday averaging career-highs in rebounds (13.7), field goal percentage (54.8 percent) and 3-point percentage (44 percent). It was his highest points per game (24.9) since before the pandemic.
But while Towns made a huge leap forward in the market, Jalen Brunson remained mysteriously undervalued by fans, receiving just 477,253 votes. This ranks seventh in the East and about half of LaMelo Ball's total votes.
Fan voting is open until January 20th.
Brunson finished ninth in the East last year but was named a reserve. Even if he doesn't finish in the top two in fan voting for the East's backcourt, Brunson theoretically gets votes from coaches and players (25 percent of fan votes each and 50 percent of fan votes). By doing so, you can grab a starting position.
Either way, the Knicks, who have won nine straight heading into Friday's likely showdown with the Thunder, are expected to have two All-Stars.
at least.
They have three other candidates to start, but Josh Hart, who leads the team in triple-doubles, scoffed at his candidacy.
“Can I be an All-Star? No, no,” he said. “I feel like [coaches] I appreciate my work, but like I said, my game isn't the glitz and glamor that would generate such praise. that's ok. I am a servant of these people. [Brunson, Towns, Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby]. I want to make sure they are okay. I want them to win awards. ”
Hart also has tropical plans for this year's All-Star Weekend in San Francisco.
“I want to touch my toes in the sand in February,” he said, adding that the All-Star selection is “a great thing for me and for the role players.”
He has the votes from Towns.
The center announced that “Josh Hart will be an All-Star.'' “I want to ruin his weekend.”
