Unsurprisingly, Damian Lillard has been selected as a reserve for next month’s All-Star game in Atlanta, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. The Portland Trail Blazers guard controversially missed out on a starting role for the March 7th exhibition game behind Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic, despite garnering a higher vote from players and the media. Doncic won the Western Conference starting role due to the fan vote.
Sources: 2021 NBA All-Star reserves:
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 23, 2021
West: Chris Paul, Paul George, Damian Lillard, Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Gobert, Zion Williamson, Anthony Davis
East: James Harden, Julius Randle, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Zach LaVine, Ben Simmons, Nikola Vucevic
This will be Lillard’s sixth All-Star appearance, making the famed game in 2014, 2015, 2018, 2019 and 2020.
Fellow Western Conference All-Star reserves include Chris Paul (Phoenix Suns), Paul George (Los Angeles Clippers), Donovan Mitchell (Utah Jazz), Rudy Gobert (Utah Jazz), Zion Williamson (New Orleans Pelicans) and Anthony Davis (Los Angeles Lakers).
The Eastern Conference reserves include James Harden (Brooklyn Nets), Julius Randle (New York Knicks), Jayson Tatum (Boston Celtics), Jaylen Brown (Boston Celtics), Zach Lavine (Chicago Bulls), Ben Simmons (Philadelphia 76ers) and Nikola Vucevic (Orlando Magic).
Lillard’s teammates CJ McCollum and Carmelo Anthony also received considerable fan votes, finishing in the top 10 in their respective Western Conference backcourt and frontcourt categories.