Always more of a popularity contest given the fact that All-Star ballots are usually released early into an NBA season, this year’s 2012 All-Star ballots hammer the point home giving fans the opportunity to vote for their favorite players just 11 days into the lockout-shortened season. Predictably, Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard (with the most votes so far at 754,737) and Miami Heat forward LeBron James (640,789) lead the pack for the Eastern Conference while L.A. Lakers guard Kobe Bryant (690,613) and Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant (633,538) have the most votes out West. Yes, these are the same results as the first All-Star ballot returns from last year.
The Eastern guards are led by Chicago natives Derrick Rose (640,476) and Dwyane Wade (637,912) while New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony holds down the second spot behind James. The West also features L.A. Clippers high-flying forward Blake Griffin behind Durant in addition to his teammate Chris Paul right behind Kobe. A potential fourth player to start that plays in L.A. would be Lakers center Andrew Bynum (496,597).
At the other end of the voting results, Hedo Turkoglu of the Orlando Magic might be getting some love from his home country of Turkey with a surprising 43,154 votes while Miami fan favorite Joel Anthony (who enjoys MVP chants as he takes free throws in the AmericanAirlines Arena) has 41,832 votes, well ahead of Wizards center Javale McGee and Al Horford of the Hawks, but doesn’t have a chance of catching up to Howard and likely zero chance of joining the All-Star bench. Still, not bad for someone who has little to no offensive game.
The leaders of both the Eastern and Western Conference players for the first returns of 2012 NBA All-Star Balloting are listed below:
Eastern Conference
Forwards: LeBron James (Mia) 640,789; Carmelo Anthony (NYK) 496,351; Amar’e Stoudemire (NYK) 178,797; Kevin Garnett (Bos) 173,161; Chris Bosh (Mia) 140,601; Paul Pierce (Bos) 94,071; Luol Deng (Chi) 85,086; Andrea Bargnani (Tor) 54,739; Carlos Boozer (Chi) 53,477; Hedo Turkoglu (Orl) 43,154.
Guards: Derrick Rose (Chi) 640,476; Dwyane Wade (Mia) 637,912; Rajon Rondo (Bos) 253,969; Ray Allen (Bos) 174,934; Deron Williams (NJN) 89,128; Jose Calderon (Tor) 42,929; John Wall (Was) 38,025; Richard Hamilton (Chi) 36,418; Kyrie Irving (Cle) 27,713; Joe Johnson (Atl) 23,384.
Centers: Dwight Howard (Orl) 754,737; Joakim Noah (Chi) 75,038; Tyson Chandler (NYK) 61,774; Joel Anthony (Mia) 41,832; JaVale McGee (Was) 24,713; Al Horford (Atl) 23,546.
Western Conference
Forwards: Kevin Durant (OKC) 633,538; Blake Griffin (LAC) 394,264; Dirk Nowitzki (Dal) 231,832; Pau Gasol (LAL) 185,428; Kevin Love (Min) 143,814; LaMarcus Aldridge (Por) 118,268; Tim Duncan (SA) 81,783; Lamar Odom (Dal) 59,686; Metta World Peace (LAL) 39,006; Danilo Gallinari (Den) 34,438.
Guards: Kobe Bryant (LAL) 690,613; Chris Paul (LAC) 540,173; Ricky Rubio (Min) 133,520; Steve Nash (Pho) 118,922; Russell Westbrook (OKC) 107,197; Kyle Lowry (Hou) 90,725; Monta Ellis (GS) 63,696; Manu Ginobili (SA) 50,765; Jason Kidd (Dal) 49,596; Chauncey Billups (LAC) 42,657.
Centers: Andrew Bynum (LAL) 496,597; DeAndre Jordan (LAC) 134,961; Marc Gasol (Mem) 102,116; Nenê (Den) 94,167; Marcin Gortat (Pho) 62,631; Kendrick Perkins (OKC) 41,579.
