Sixers’ Tyrese Maxey drops to third in East in All-Star voting; Joel Embiid remains 17th
Maxey was supplanted by Knicks point guard and former Villanova standout Jalen Brunson.
Tyrese Maxey dropped one spot in the second round of NBA All-Star fan voting returns released Tuesday. The 76ers point guard now ranks third among Eastern Conference players and fifth overall.
Meanwhile, Joel Embiid remains 17th among players in the East.
Maxey had been fourth overall and second in the conference when the first returns dropped on Dec. 29. However, he was supplanted by New York Knicks point guard and former Villanova standout Jalen Brunson.
Los Angeles Lakers point guard Luka Dončić is the league’s top vote-getter with 2,229,811 votes, and Milwaukee Bucks forward and two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo is second overall. He leads the East with 2,092,284 votes. Brunson has 1,916,497 votes, followed by Maxey at 1,908,978.
» READ MORE: Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey is Eastern Conference player of the week for second time this season
Fans account for 50% of the vote to determine the 10 starters for the All-Star Game, which will be played Feb. 15 at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Calif. A media panel and NBA players each account for 25% of the vote. This season, All-Stars are being selected regardless of position.
Voting will conclude at 11:59 p.m. on Jan. 14. NBC and Peacock will reveal the All-Star starters on Jan. 19. Coaches will select All-Star reserves at a later date.
Under a new format, two teams of U.S. players and one team of international players (the World team) will compete in a round-robin tournament featuring four 12-minute games.
It’s not surprising that Maxey has a solid chance to be voted an All-Star starter.
An All-Star reserve in 2023, he entered Tuesday third in the league in scoring (31.0 points per game), fourth in steals (1.8), and 12th in assists (7.0). He’s also fourth in made three-pointers (120). And the sixth-year veteran has scored at least 30 points in 17 of his 32 games.
Maxey’s season highlight was a career-high 54 points, to go with nine assists, five rebounds, three steals, and three blocks in a 123-114 overtime victory over the Bucks. He joined Hall of Famer Wilt Chamberlain (March 18, 1968) as the only two players in franchise history to produce at least 50 points and nine assists in a game.
» READ MORE: How good is Tyrese Maxey? He’s now in a class with Sixers great Allen Iverson and other NBA elites.
Detroit Pistons point guard Cade Cunningham (1,752,801) and Cleveland Cavaliers shooting guard Donovan Mitchell (1,530,237) round out the East’s top five vote-getters.
The West’s top five vote-getters are Dončić, Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić (1,998,560), Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry (1,844,903), Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (1,554,468), and San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1,321,985).