The Western Conference All-Star reserves were announced Sunday night, and let’s just say the NBA stirred up a storm with this one. LeBron James is in.
Kawhi Leonard is out. And no matter how you slice it, that’s a head-scratcher of the highest order.
Let’s be clear: this isn’t about LeBron’s legacy. The man’s a 22-time All-Star for a reason.
He’s one of the greatest to ever do it, still putting up 21.9 points and 6.6 assists per game on 50.2% shooting at age 41. That’s remarkable.
But this isn’t a Lifetime Achievement Award. The All-Star Game is supposed to showcase the best players of the current season.
And by that metric, Leonard’s omission isn’t just puzzling-it’s borderline indefensible.
Kawhi has been nothing short of elite this season. He’s playing at an All-NBA level, anchoring a Clippers squad that’s clawed its way back into playoff contention despite a thin roster and a shaky start.
He ranks sixth in the league in both Player Efficiency Rating (PER) and Box Plus-Minus (BPM)-and every player above him in those categories was voted in as a starter. He’s also leading the NBA in steals and flirting with the ultra-exclusive 50-40-90 club, shooting 49.6% from the field, 39.5% from three, and 93.6% from the line.
That’s surgical efficiency.
And yes, Leonard has missed 13 games-but even with that, his impact has been undeniable. You’d be hard-pressed to find more than two players in the West more valuable than him through the end of January.
So how did we end up here?
The All-Star reserves are selected by the 15 Western Conference head coaches. They can’t vote for their own players, and they submit ranked ballots electronically.
Those ballots are tallied by an independent accounting firm, with points assigned based on placement. The top seven vote-getters make the cut.
But here’s the thing: there’s no rule that says coaches have to take this process seriously. There’s no accountability if they outsource it to a staffer or treat it like a formality. And when you look at the final results, it’s hard not to wonder if that’s exactly what happened.
Leonard didn’t just lose out to LeBron-he lost out to multiple players whose seasons haven’t held a candle to his. Devin Booker, Deni Avdija, Jamal Murray-all fine players, but none have matched Leonard’s production or consistency. Add in names like Alperen Şengün, Julius Randle, James Harden, and Rudy Gobert-guys who’ve arguably outperformed James this season-and the picture gets even murkier.
LeBron, for all his greatness, has played just 992 minutes through Saturday. And the Lakers?
They’ve actually been slightly better when he hasn’t been on the court. Despite spending nearly two-thirds of his minutes alongside Luka Dončić, the team has only been 1.7 points per 100 possessions better with him in the lineup.
That’s not nothing, but it’s not All-Star-level dominance either.
So what happened? One theory: the coaches split their Clippers vote between Leonard and Harden, and in doing so, left both off the final list.
That’s plausible. The Clippers were 23-25 entering Monday, and coaches don’t always reward teams with losing records-fairly or not.
But if that’s the logic, it’s inconsistent at best. The All-Star Game is filled with players from teams hovering around .500 or worse.
The real twist? The league still has to name at least one injury replacement-Giannis Antetokounmpo is out-and possibly more.
With the new All-Star format (a round-robin tournament featuring two U.S. teams and one World team), the NBA hasn’t confirmed whether replacements need to match the original player’s conference or nationality. That opens the door for commissioner Adam Silver to step in and make the call himself.
And here’s the kicker: the All-Star festivities are happening at Crypto.com Arena, the Clippers’ home floor. So if Silver chooses not to select Leonard as an injury replacement, it’s going to be awkward. If he does, it’ll feel like a course correction-and maybe a necessary one.
Either way, the league now finds itself in a bizarre spot. The coaches' vote has created a scenario where one of the best players in the conference is watching from the sidelines while others with lesser resumes suit up. It’s a tough look for the process, and it raises real questions about how seriously these votes are being cast.
The All-Star Game is supposed to be a celebration of the league’s top talent. Leaving Kawhi Leonard out of that conversation this season? That’s not just a snub-it’s a miss of epic proportions.