A nice cherry on top of the New York Knicks’ return to relevance is their renewed presence in All-Star festivities. For years, NY fans itched to have a single player in contention for the honor, much less be regularly featured at the showcase weekend. Not only have Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle brought that back to the Mecca, but their new duo now has a chance to be starters at the main event on Sunday, February 16th.
Jalen Brunson Inching Toward Completing All-Star Starting Duo
After the release of the first All-Star fan vote returns, many in the NBA community were baffled about why a superstar point guard playing in arguably the biggest market struggles so much for votes. Just like last year, when Damian Lillard was named starter over Brunson despite an inferior season, the pride of NY is underrated in the fan vote in 2025. The first round of voting had Brunson at fourth for guards, over 227,000 tallies behind Lillard for third.
Fan opinion only accounts for 50 percent of the result, with players and media each getting 25 percent. Still, it was jarring to see Brunson constantly so underrated. However, the second round of fan voting was released on January 9th, and Brunson made massive progress. He remains fourth among guards but has shaved the deficit behind Lillard to around 85,000 votes. He also stands about 250,000 short of Donovan Mitchell for second.
Luckily for Brunson and New York, fan vote is only half the battle. With his solid season and his Knicks a top-five team, he has a great chance to be elevated by his peers and the media. Brunson’s game is well-respected around the league, so he should gain points there. Knicks fans need to continue voting for him to close the gap on Lillard and Mitchell and hope the other 50 percent lifts him to starting honors.
Brunson And Towns Could Be New York’s First Starting Duo Since 1975
If the Knicks captain can grab that spot, NY could send two starters for the first time in 50 seasons. Karl-Anthony Towns sits comfortably in the third frontcourt position, over a million votes clear of Magic star Paolo Banchero. With New York’s success and KAT’s incredible year, he is a lock to start the game for the first time.
It would mean so much to such a tortured fanbase to have such great representation at the All-Star game. It’s been a half-century since the squad was this relevant at the NBA’s marquee weekend.
Why Is Brunson Underrated In Voting?
LaMelo Ball clearing Brunson by such a wide margin (550,000 votes) is alarming much of the basketball community. It seems stunning that a clearly inferior player on a losing team could win that battle. However, it makes perfect sense. Ball has been a phenom for nearly a decade at this point, much more famous than a late-bloomer in Brunson. Combine that with the ridiculous flash and skill he displays on a nightly basis, as well as the stat sheets he stuffs, and non-Knick fans aren’t going to care which guy adds more to winning.
Ball, Mitchell, and Lillard are all great players who deserve All-Star nods. For all of his positive impact on the team with the fifth-best record, Brunson should get the second starting spot. It looks like he might do just that.
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