NBA Insider Hints LeBron James’ 22nd All-Star Bid is Alive After Nikola Jokic Injury Shakes Up Early Voting Landscape

NBA insider Rachel Nichols speculated that LA Lakers star LeBron James will secure his 22nd All-Star appearance after the injury to Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic. The three-time NBA MVP sustained a hyperextended left knee and will miss at least four weeks.

The league announced on Monday the first returns for the 2026 NBA All-Star Game (ASG), and it stunningly listed James at No. 9 in the Western Conference voting. The starting lineup for each squad is selected via a combination of fan (50%), player (25%) and media (25%) votes. Meanwhile, NBA coaches will fill up both teams' reserves.

Nichols said James might not be an All-Star if he is not named a starter, citing that the NBA coaches might not vote for him. Nichols added Jokic's injury might have implications in the ASG voting. Jokic is the second leading vote-getter in the West behind Lakers star Luka Doncic.

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"With LeBron not currently a starter in All-Star voting, his 21-year streak of making it at all is in danger," Nichols tweeted Tuesday. "But could Nikola Jokic’s injury open the door back up? Fortunately, the Jokic injury isn’t as serious as feared, but the Nuggets still say he won’t even be reevaluated until the end of January, and the All-Star game is just a couple weeks later. "Hard to see them being okay with Jokic playing in a meaningless game, which means Adam Silver would get to appoint an injury replacement. Hmmm."

The latest report on Jokic's injury set his reevaluation just two weeks before the ASG on Feb. 15. Nichols noted that Denver may be cautious with its superstar when he returns.

The 2026 ASG has a new tournament format, wherein there will be two USA teams and one World team playing in a round-robin. In this edition, 16 Americans are slated to be selected.

Has LeBron James' popularity declined?

LA Lakers star LeBron James has been a starter for the All-Star Game for an NBA-record 21 times. He has been among the leading vote-getters in each season. However, he only got 536,555 votes in the first fan returns for the 2026 ASG, to the surprise of many.

There are 14 other players who garnered more overall votes than James, the NBA's all-time leading scorer.

James' drop in the first All-Star balloting could be attributed to his declining production. The 41-year-old star is averaging career lows of 20.5 points and 4.9 rebounds to go along with 6.7 assists per game.

Despite James being ninth among Western Conference players, it's too early to tell if the Lakers star will be a starter. Further, in the new ASG format, coaches will likely vote James as a reserve for one of the two USA teams.

Edited by Kim Daniel Rubinos