With the annual NBA All-Star break in two weeks, it’s time to discuss who made and who didn’t make the cut for the All-Star teams. We are going to begin with the Western Conference. Of course, you have your usual suspects, like Luka Dončić and Nikola Jokić. However, there are some first-time players who made the cut as well. Let’s dive into the starters and reserves for this season’s NBA All-Stars for the West!
NBA Western Conference Starters
The Western Conference All-Stars have been announced. With that, another year of deserving players who get the nod as some of the best players in the conference to play in a game made up of some of the best basketball players on the planet. These players have the titles of five of the best players in the Western Conference. Here are your starters:
- Los Angeles Lakers – Luka Doncic – 6th appearance
- Golden State Warriors – Steph Curry – 12th appearance
- Oklahoma City Thunder – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – 4th appearance
- Denver Nuggets – Nikola Jokic – 8th appearance
- San Antonio Spurs – Victor Wembanyama – 2nd appearance
NBA Western Conference Reserves
With the starters being named, there are players who are just as worthy of the accomplishment as the starters. In some instances, some might be more deserving than others who are starting in the All-Star game. It comes down to the voters, and in some cases, team success comes into effect. With that being said, here are the players who were named as the reserves for the event:
- Minnesota Timberwolves – Anthony Edwards – 4th appearance
- Denver Nuggets – Jamal Murray – 1st appearance
- Oklahoma City Thunder – Chet Holmgren – 1st appearance
- Houston Rockets – Kevin Durant – 16th appearance
- Phoenix Suns – Devin Booker – 5th appearance
- Portland Trail Blazers – Deni Avdija – 1st appearance
- Los Angeles Lakers – LeBron James – 22nd appearance
Snubs
This is where I have an issue with some of the voting and people who missed. The Houston Rockets’ center, Alperen Sengun, should have been an All-Star this season. From where he was last season to this year, I would have given him the nod over Chet Holmgren. However, when you have a dominant season like the Thunder have had, it was inevitable that there would be multiple All-Stars on the roster. Look back at the 2015 Atlanta Hawks. They were a dominant regular-season team, and four of their five starters were named to the weekend.
The Los Angeles Clippers‘ duo of Kawhi Leonard and James Harden was also borderline all-stars, to me. They are both having great seasons: Harden is averaging 25 ppg and 8 assists, while Leonard is averaging 27 ppg and 6 rebounds. It’s great that Jamal Murray made the NBA All-Star Game for the first time in his career, but his being over Kawhi is ludicrous. He’s been as healthy as he’s ever been over the past few seasons, but it appears that “The Klaw” is back.
Final Thoughts
For someone who doesn’t have a vote, it’s always interesting to see who gets voted for and who doesn’t get voted as an All-Star. It can baffle me. For Sengun not to be named to the All-Star is an interesting snub. He’s had an incredible season. What do you think of the NBA’s Western Conference All-Stars? Who didn’t make the cut that you would have put in the game/weekend?
As always, thank you so much for checking out the NBA’s 2026 Western Conference All-Stars. Be sure to check out our other amazing content here at New Leaf News! We hope you’re enjoying your day and look forward to seeing you again soon.
