NBA All-Star voting already has one major snub

One major snub was apparent though. Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland did not even make the top-10 in voting among Eastern Conference backcourt players. Washington’s Jordan Poole and Boston’s Derrick White were among those who surprisingly made the leaderboard over Garland.

The 24-year-old Garland, who was already an All-Star in 2022, is the floor general for a Cavs team that has the best record in the NBA this season (29-4) as well as the best offense in the NBA (120.0 points per 100 possessions). 

With individual averages of 20.5 points and 6.7 assists per game on 49.3% from the field and 42.7% from deep (both career highs), Garland’s All-Star case is rock-solid.

Of course, Garland does not really have much name recognition, and fan voting is little more than a popularity contest (as evidenced by LaMelo Ball of the 7-25 Charlotte Hornets leading all East backcourt players in votes).

Still, with voting running through Jan. 20 and both players and media members getting to have a say in the final tally as well, Garland may get a boost in the coming weeks. But with the huge number of talented guards in the East especially, this kind of thing inevitably happens every single season.