LeBron James’s Incredible All-Star Game Streak Appears to Be Over

LeBron James was not voted an All-Star starter for the first time in decades. | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

On Monday the NBA revealed the starting lineups for the 2026 NBA All-Star Game. As always they made for a star-studded group of names.

In the East, two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo leads the way as the conference’s top vote-getter amid another excellent season for the Bucks. Jalen Brunson, Tyrese Maxey, Cade Cunningham, and Jaylen Brown round out the starting five; the latter three names are making their first appearances in the starting lineup of the All-Star game.

In the West, Nuggets star Nikola Jokić and Lakers star Luka Dončić led the way in the fan vote and earned starting spots as a result. Joining them will be reigning Finals MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the immortal Steph Curry, and young French superstar Victor Wembanyama. Wemby and Curry’s selection over Anthony Edwards is the closest thing to controversy sparked by the All-Star starting lineup reveal sparked, but it was a near miss for the Timberwolves stud; the broadcast revealed Edwards tied with Wembanyama in the coach and player votes but the fans gave the edge to the Spurs star.

There is, however, one very notable name missing: LeBron James.

James, as the NBA’s biggest superstar throughout the 21st century, has always been a prominent figure in All-Star voting. In fact for the vast majority of his career he was considered a shoe-in to be named an All-Star starter on an annual basis. His combination of great play and consistent availability meant his case was always iron-clad. It resulted in an absolutely incredible streak of 21 consecutive All-Star starter nominations for James.

That streak has now come to an end. For the first time since 2004, LeBron James was not named a starter in the NBA All-Star game.

Some may remember James didn’t suit up last season at all for the All-Star Game. He bowed out the day of the showcase due to injury, which broke his streak of 20 straight All-Star games played. But he was still voted a starter last season which makes this year’s voting results a true streak-snapper.

How did this happen? It’s pretty simple: James missed too much time. The Lakers star missed the first 14 games of the year while recovering from a sciatica issue and to date has only played 24 of 41 possible games for Los Angeles. And when he did play, James wasn’t as dominant as fans are accustomed to. Some decline should be expected given he is 41 years old but James is averaging fewer points, assists, rebounds, and minutes than he did last year.

His All-Star dreams are not dead yet, though. Jokić has spent the last few weeks sidelined with injury and may opt out of All-Star festitivies to continue recovery, in which case the league will select an injury replacement for the star big man; James would likely be in consideration, although Edwards seems like the most probable candidate given he nearly qualified for the starting lineup already. In the bigger picture, for whatever you want to make of his statistical decline, James is still averaging 22.6 points, 6.9 assists, and 5.9 rebounds a night. That’s still quality production and certainly enough to justify consideration for a reserve spot on the West All-Star roster.

At least seven additional players will be selected to fill out the rest of the All-Star roster for the Western Conference, and the NBA will reveal those players in the coming weeks. James seems likely to be part of the group, but it isn’t a certainty—for the first time since the early aughts. A strange new world for the NBA.

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