The days of NBA All-Star voting being a glorified popularity contest finally appear to be over.
The league announced on Monday that they are making significant changes to the All-Star balloting procedure and will now be giving both players and members of the basketball media a say in voting for All-Star starters. The fans will retain the largest chunk of the vote (50 percent), but the players and the media will now get 25 percent each, beginning with the 2017 All-Star Game in New Orleans. Voting is set to open on Christmas Day.
For first time ever, players & media will join fans in selecting All-Star starters! #NBAAllStar Voting presented by @verizon tips off 12/25 pic.twitter.com/CnVTY7ZWlD
— 2017 NBA All-Star (@NBAAllStar) December 19, 2016
It’s a clever way to implement some checks and balances on a system that has become increasingly arbitrary in recent years. Zaza Pachulia came within roughly 14,000 votes of starting the game for the West last year and Marcin Gortat missed out on starting for the East by 77,000 votes the year before.
Players around the league have openly criticized fan voting in recent seasons (and with good reason), so this definitely looks like the best of both worlds for the NBA in keeping the fans heavily involved but also adding some more informed perspectives to the mix.
