Biggest Snubs from 2025 NBA All-Star Reserves
Congratulations to everyone who earned a selection to the 2025 NBA All-Star Game. Especially the first-timers.
We will now discuss players who could have—if not outright deserved—to get the nod instead.
Before we go any further, let's look at the full list of selections for the Feb. 16 extravaganza. First up, the Eastern Conference:
- East Starters: Jalen Brunson, Donovan Mitchell, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jayson Tatum, Karl-Anthony Towns
- East Reserves: Jaylen Brown, Cade Cunningham, Darius Garland, Tyler Herro, Damian Lillard, Evan Mobley, Pascal Siakam
And now, the Western Conference:
- West Starters: Stephen Curry, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Nikola Jokić
- West Reserves: Anthony Davis, Anthony Edwards, James Harden, Jaren Jackson Jr., Alperen Şengün, Jalen Williams, Victor Wembanyama
Usual Snub Town rules apply. Whining about players who should have made it without acknowledging who they could or should replace is lame, pointless, disingenuous, the whole nine. The following players are here because they have a real case over someone else in their conference. And we will talk about who.
Notable Omissions
1 of 5
- LaMelo Ball
- Luka Dončić
- Franz Wagner
Injuries derailed the cases for all three of these players—two of whom would otherwise be locks.
Dončić has not played like his usual dominant self, but he was crescendoing enough at the time of his calf strain to get a nod over at least two other Western Conference entrants. The Dallas Mavericks' touch-and-go play without him only reinforces his indispensability to contention, and his increased utility away from the ball is a vote in his favor even if it dings his counting stats.
Never mind a first-time All-Star selection for Wagner. He was tracking toward back-of-the-ballot MVP consideration before his oblique injury. Keeping the Orlando Magic's offense above water without Paolo Banchero while being an active participant in their hellacious defense legitimately saved the team's season. I wonder whether he would've earned a bid if he returned a few games sooner and crossed the 1,000-minute threshold.
LaMelo even getting an honorable mention will be divisive. It shouldn't be. His role on the Charlotte Hornets is everything. The fact that they have an above-average offense when he plays is astounding—and proof that his 28 points and seven assists per game aren't empty calories.
Spare us the efficiency and shot-selection lectures. LaMelo isn't perfect. But so much of what he does comes down to an unchecked license borne from necessity. His teammates rate in the 16th percentile of overall shot-making, according to BBall Index. And concerns about his sub-55 true shooting feel performative when Alperen Şengün has a lower mark as a big (54) and managed to earn an All-Star nod in the West.
Eastern Conference: Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana Pacers
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Tyrese Haliburton's exclusion feels like a classic case of allowing onset struggles to define the entire season.
Yes, he opened the year all sorts of uneven and passive and, sometimes, outright bad. But he resumed All-NBA exploits around Thanksgiving. That is more than half the season ago.
It's not like his overall numbers are notably deflated, either. He is averaging 18.3 points and 8.6 assists while downing 57.9 percent of his twos and 36.7 percent of his threes.
Jaylen Brown (52.0 and 31.8, respectively), in particular, would kill for that efficiency. And while he's averaging 23.2 points per game, Haliburton generates close to that amount off assists (22.3).
Rewarding Tyler Herro's consistency and improvement margins perhaps makes more sense than selecting Haliburton. Brown over Haliburton is tougher to square away right now. Brown is hardly the billboard for consistency himself this year.
You need to believe he's providing enough defensive value to offset the gap that continues to separate him from Haliburton on offense. That's debatable.
Western Conference: Kyrie Irving, Dallas Mavericks
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Kyrie Irving is averaging around 24 points and five assists while knocking down over 50 percent of his twos and 40 percent of his threes. Here is every other player hitting those benchmarks:
- Jalen Brunson
- Tyler Herro
- Nikola Jokić
Know what these three all have in common? They're 2025 All-Stars.
Back issues have so far cost Kyrie 10 games. That works against him. But the minutes gap between him and every other Western Conference reserve peaks at 121 (James Harden). That isn't nearly sizable enough to discount his volume and efficiency. Especially when, recent noise and all, Dallas has won the minutes he's logged without Luka Dončić.
There is a natural impetus to reward Harden for headlining a pleasantly surprising Los Angeles Clippers squad, and to recognize someone from the Houston Rockets for upending the entire Western Conference power structure. But Kyrie has a case over both Harden and Şengün.
You can say the same for Jalen Williams, given his ebbing efficiency, but he's leveled up his versatility and execution for an historically awesome Oklahoma City Thunder defense while remaining a demonstrative positive at the other end.
Eastern Conference: Trae Young, Atlanta Hawks
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Scoring and efficiency dips undoubtedly undermined Trae Young's All-Star case. He has slipped below 35 percent shooting from three, and his 45.9 percent clip on twos is a career low.
Measuring Young against himself rings hollow. He's still putting up 22.7 points and dishing out a league-leading 11.4 assists per game. Playmaking and the mere threat of his shot-making are the Atlanta Hawks' lifeline. Their offense hovers near the 60th percentile with him on the court and craters to the 10th percentile when he sits.
Not even the rise of Jalen Johnson (pre-injury) has diminished Atlanta's dependence on Young. Leaning on less-proven guys like Dyson Daniels and Zaccharie Risacher, coupled with Bogdan Bogdanović, results in a mega-heavy lift. Young's teammates currently rank in the 3rd percentile of overall shot-making, per Bball-Index.
Context demands we reconsider his case against those of Jaylen Brown and Tyler Herro. Brown has way more value at the defensive end, and Herro is playing with super-duper efficiency and much-improved decision-making. But Young is responsible for generating more of his own and others' offense than either of them, and his sub-56 true shooting still eclipses that from Brown (54.4).
Honorable Eastern Conference Mention: Tyrese Maxey, Philadelphia 76ers
Western Conference: Domantas Sabonis, Sacramento Kings
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Kangz-era dramatics and the enduring debates over which of the Sacramento Kings' two stars are better potentially ended Domantas Sabonis' All-Star candidacy before it could ever get off the ground. That's disappointing, to say the least.
Sabonis is averaging more than 20 points per game on 68 true shooting while taking more threes, he's on track to win his third consecutive rebounding title, and his 6.6 assists pace the Kings.
For good measure, here is every player ever to average at least 20 points and five assists while being within one point of Sabonis' true shooting percentage:
- Kevin Durant (2022-23)
- Nikola Jokic (2022-23)
- Stephen Curry (2017-18)
That is the entire list. And that is bonkers.
Dismissing Sabonis' case because of Sacramento's record (and, again, Kangz-ing) might fly if this were an MVP debate. It's not. All-Star selections have more to do with individual brilliance.
Yet, Sabonis' on-court impact also exists beneath the radar. The Kings are outscoring opponents when he plays by 5.9 points per 100 possessions (including a plus-6.8 without Fox). That net rating plunges when Sabonis steps off by 14.9 points—the sixth-largest swing in the league among everyone who's played at least 500 minutes.
Quibble about Sabonis' defense and playoff utility all you like. He is among the most impactful regular-season players, if not in general then certainly this season. And he easily could have, probably should have, been included over Alperen Şengün or James Harden.
Honorable Western Conference Mention: Norman Powell, Los Angeles Clippers
Dan Favale covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter (@danfavale), and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, co-hosted by Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes.
Unless otherwise cited, stats courtesy of NBA.com, Basketball Reference, Stathead or Cleaning the Glass. Salary information via Spotrac. Draft-pick obligations via RealGM.
