The Hornets guard was leading the fan vote in the NBA’s most recent release of the numbers.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. β One of the NBA’s leading scorers was left off the starting lineup for the 2025 NBA All-Star Game.
The NBA announced the starting lineups for both conferences on Thursday. Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, Boston’s Jayson Tatum, Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell, and New York’s Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson made the cut for the Eastern Conference.
Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball was not named for the starting lineup despite leading the fan vote at his position and having a standout year.
Ball is second in the Eastern Conference in points per game (29), fourth in assists per game (7.5), and is tied for 11th in steals per game (1.4). Ball also leads the conference in 3-pointers per game (4.2).Β
Scoring percentage is one area that Ball is behind in. He hits 41.9% of his attempts from the field, which puts him behind all five All-Star starters.
The fan vote contributes 50% of the consideration for the All-Star starting lineup. The remaining 50% is split between players and a media panel. In the NBA’s last fan vote return, Ball was leading Eastern Conference guards with 1.9 million votes, over 400,000 votes ahead of the next player.Β
Charlotte’s lack of success in the win column could be hurting Ball’s All-Star potential. All five players chosen for the starting lineup are on teams in the top four of the Eastern Conference standings. Phoenix forward Kevin Durant is an outlier on the Western Conference starting lineup as his team is barely above (.500).
The Hornets (11-29) are 13th in the Eastern Conference. Charlotte is 4-2 in recent games but won just one of its 19 games before that.
Ball will still have a chance to make the All-Star game reserves. That roster will be announced on Thursday, Jan. 30.
