Pascal Siakam seems destined to make his first appearance in an NBA all-star game.
The Raptors forward has moved into second place among Eastern Conference forwards in fan balloting for starters in the Feb. 16 game in Chicago, the league announced Thursday afternoon.
Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks is the runaway leader among East forwards with 4,474,107 votes, but Siakam (2,433,411) has vaulted past Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid (2,398,743) and into second place in the final public release of vote totals. Miami’s Jimmy Butler (2,046,257) is fourth.
Fan voting continues until Monday and counts for 50 per cent of the final tally, with players and a media panel each representing 25 per cent of the total.