On Sunday, the NBA announced the reserves for the 2026 All-Star Game, which takes place in less than two weeks at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, the new home of the LA Clippers. It goes without saying that there were no Warriors among the reserves … Steph Curry already made the team as a starter, and Jimmy Butler III’s ACL tear ended his slim chances of representing the Dubs in Inglewood.
It’s the season for snubbery, and a lot of fan bases are upset that one of their players didn’t make the cut for the mid-season festivities. So who do you think are the biggest snubs?
Here’s the full lineups as a refresher:
West starters:
Steph Curry (Warriors)
Luka Dončić (Lakers)
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Thunder)
Nikola Jokić (Nuggets)
Victor Wembanyama (Spurs)
East starters:
Giannis Antetokounmpo (Warriors Bucks … for now)
Jaylen Brown (Celtics)
Jalen Brunson (Knicks)
Cade Cunningham (Pistons)
Tyrese Maxey (76ers)
West reserves:
Deni Avdija (Trail Blazers)
Devin Booker (Suns)
Kevin Durant (Rockets)
Anthony Edwards (Timberwolves)
Chet Holmgren (Thunder)
LeBron James (Lakers)
Jamal Murray (Nuggets)
East reserves:
Scottie Barnes (Raptors)
Jalen Duren (Pistons)
Jalen Johnson (Hawks)
Donovan Mitchell (Cavaliers)
Norman Powell (Heat)
Pascal Siakam (Pacers)
Karl-Anthony Towns (Knicks)
So who got snubbed? The clear answer in my eyes is Kawhi Leonard. Normally I’m of the mindset that most snubs aren’t worth getting upset over … that in any given year, there are 30 or so players worthy of being All-Stars and it’s hard to make a case that the “snub” actually deserves to make the roster over any of the players ahead of him. But I probably would have picked Leonard over every Western Conference reserve other than Edwards. He’s averaging 27.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 2.0 steals per game, shooting 39.1% on threes with a 62.5% true-shooting percentage, and playing his usual defense. Add in the fact that his team is hosing the All-Star Game, and it’s truly staggering to me that he didn’t get selected.
There will be replacements announced between now and the February 15 game, and hopefully Leonard is on that list. But for now, he’s my biggest snub.
