Despite a heroic effort on the court and one of the best social-media campaigns in recent memory, Joel Embiid will not be named a starter on the 2017 NBA All-Star team. The Eastern Conference’s front-court slots went to LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Jimmy Butler.
Early reports from ESPN’s Chris Haynes hinted that Embiid would be on the outside looking in. James and Antetokounmpo were basically locks heading into the media and player voting portion of the festivities, and it was Butler who was the biggest beneficiary of the deemphasis on fan voting.