A NBA released, this Monday (19/01), the official list of holders of the All-Star Game 2026revealing the ten best-placed players in the vote that defines the starting quintets of the All-Star Game. As usual, the choice was based on the vote of fans (50%), league players (25%) and specialized press (25%), with the five highest scoring athletes in each conference being announced as starters.
Among the most voted, Luka Doncic, from the Los Angeles Lakers, led the Western Conference, while Giannis Antetokounmpo, from the Milwaukee Bucks, was the strongest name in the East. The 2026 All-Star Game will be played on February 15, at the Intuit Dome, in Inglewood, California, new home of the Los Angeles Clippers.
One of the main new features compared to previous seasons is the end of the mandatory division by positions. Starting with this edition, the five starters in each conference can be guards, wings or centers, with no minimum or maximum limit per role, making the selection more flexible and based exclusively on performance and voting.
Despite maintaining the traditional list with ten starters, the number of players who will actually start the matches will be different in 2026. This is because the NBA will implement a new format for the All-Star Game, with the creation of three teams: two made up of players from the United States and one made up of international athletes. With three teams competing, it is mathematically impossible for just ten players to start the event as starters.
The league has not yet officially detailed how the squads will be distributed, but has confirmed that the other 14 All-Star players will be chosen later by NBA coaches. There is even the possibility that the total number of selected candidates will be increased if among the initial candidates there are not at least 16 representatives from the United States.
The release of the list of holders also marked a historic moment. For the first time since 2004, LeBron James does not appear among the players chosen to start the All-Star Game. At 41 years old, the Los Angeles Lakers star ends a streak of 22 consecutive seasons appearing among the event’s starters.
LeBron had been left out of the All-Star Game only once during this period, in the 2025 edition. On that occasion, despite being selected as a starter, he ended up not taking the court due to ankle pain, in San Francisco. In the current 2025/26 season, James played 24 games, averaging 22.6 points, 5.9 rebounds and 6.9 assists.
The All-Star reformulation comes after criticism of the previous format, adopted in 2025, which featured four teams — including one made up only of rookies and second-year players. The edition recorded the second worst audience in the history of the event, a determining factor for the NBA to seek a model that increases competitiveness and public interest.
NBA starters All-Star Game 2026
| Eastern Conference | Western Conference |
|---|---|
| Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks) | Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets) |
| Jalen Brunson (New York Knicks) | Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors) |
| Jaylen Brown (Boston Celtics) | Luka Doncic (Los Angeles Lakers) |
| Tyrese Maxey (Philadelphia 76ers) | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder) |
| Cade Cunningham (Detroit Pistons) | Victor Wembanyama (San Antonio Spurs) |
Three voting groups determined the starters for the 2026 NBA All-Star Game:
▪️ Fans (50%)
▪️ NBA players (25%)
▪️ Media panel (25%)Complete voting results are available here: https://t.co/0YQtBsIaGp
Below are the overall rankings for the top finishers in each conference. pic.twitter.com/W21e8EOvpH
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) January 19, 2026
When the N.B.A. Will the 2026 All-Star Game be played?
The 2026 NBA All-Star Game will be played on February 15, a Sunday, at the Intuit Dome, in Los Angeles, the gym that serves as home of the Los Angeles Clippers.
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