On Monday, the NBA released its first fan All-Star voting returns. Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokić sits second in the West with 1,128,962 votes (behind Luka Dončić), and third in the league. Jamal Murray deserves to be with Jokić at All-Star weekend in Los Angeles, but he's *check notes* 14th in the West in fan voting with only 130,656 votes.
Fan voting counts for 50 percent of the vote for All-Star starters, with players (25 percent) and a media panel (25 percent) making up the remaining 50 percent. Head coaches pick seven reserve players from each conference, regardless of what position they play.
Although Murray isn't one of the top vote-getters in the West thus far, players and the media could still vote for him to be a starter. At the very least, he should be a reserve, and hopefully, coaches will recognize that. Fans shouldn't want to leave it in their hands, though, as you never know what will happen.
Murray is averaging a career-high 25.4 points and 6.8 assists on 48.9/45.7/88.7 shooting splits. He's played in all but one of Denver's games, averaging 35.1 minutes. It's the best he's played to start the season since the Nuggets drafted him in 2016.
Jamal Murray disrespected in first round of All-Star fan voting
Murray's 25.4 points per game are the 11th-highest average in the West among all players (the seventh-highest among guards). There are three players ahead of him who have played in at least 30 games as he has. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who is averaging 32 points per game, is the only player ahead of Murray who is on a team with a better record than Denver. For the record, SGA is fourth in the conference in fan voting.
The Nuggets are third in the conference with a 22-9 record, one game back from the No. 2 Spurs and 4.5 games back from the Thunder. Given their standing and how well Murray has played this season, they should have two All-Stars.
Murray doesn't need to be named an All-Star to prove that he's a star-level player (a championship holds more weight!), but it would be a nice honor for the 28-year-old. Jokić would also enjoy it, as he's never had one of his teammates with him at All-Star weekend. That should change in 2026. Murray deserves it.
Take this as your reminder to vote for Murray and Jokić daily. It's free to create an NBA ID to do so. All you have to do is click this link to learn more about how to vote.