Young Leads East Guards in Early All-Star Voting

The NBA released the first return of fan votes on Thursday, and Hawks guard Trae Young leads all Eastern-Conference guards with 443,412 votes. Young has ascended into stardom this season after finishing second in Rookie of the Year voting a season ago and has rightfully merited strong All-Star consideration from fans and experts alike.

He's averaging 28.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 8.3 assists per game, with a 58.6 true shooting percentage to boot. He has shot nearly 37 percent from 3-point range on over nine attempts per game and has been among the most efficient high-usage guards in basketball.

Fan voting accounts for 50 percent of the formula for determining All-Star starters, and the league uses a format of two guards and three frontcourt players. Giannis Antetokounmpo leads the East with 1,073,358 votes while Luka Dončić leads all players with 1,073,957.

It should go without saying that fan voting is not necessarily representative of who actually deserves to play in the All Star game, but Young probably deserves a spot on the East roster given his prodigious per-game production, unique skill set, and importance to Atlanta's offense. His defense remains a major liability, but a singular offensive force is perhaps the most valuable commodity in the NBA. Young has fit into that group this year, even if Atlanta's team results don't back it up.

Fans can vote for All Stars here. Voting closes at 10:29 a.m. ET on January 21. The All Star game will be held on February 17 in Chicago.