The Ringer NBA Show The Biggest All-Star Selection Debates | Group Chat
34 snips
Jan 19, 2026 The hosts dive into their All-Star ballot picks, sparking intense debates about Jalen Brunson versus Donovan Mitchell and spotlighting the rise of Jalen Johnson and Michael Porter Jr. They analyze Eastern and Western Conference starters, discuss the impact of Anthony Edwards, and highlight the defensive prowess of Chet Holmgren. A critical examination of Devin Booker’s case and Kawhi Leonard’s health adds depth, culminating with speculation on whether LeBron James can make a late All-Star push.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Positionless Voting Shifts The Hard Part
- Positionless All-Star voting removes positional excuses but creates tougher starter/reserve debates.
- The format forces voters to agonize over marginal choices instead of arbitrary positional limits.
International Team Rules Invite Fudging
- International versus American All-Star grouping invites broad self-identification and classification ambiguity.
- Adam Silver may be tasked with ad-hoc decisions about many players' international status.
Guard Starter Debates Come Down To Small Margins
- East starter choices were mostly obvious but the final guard starter sparked a tight Brunson-Mitchell-Maxey debate.
- Voters weighed efficiency, team impact, and defensive differences as tiebreakers.