Sixers’ Joel Embiid named 2021 NBA All-Star starter

Joel Embiid has officially been named as an Eastern Conference starter for the NBA’s 2021 All-Star game. This is Embiid’s fourth straight selection as an All-Star starter, and it’s safe to safe he’s done more than enough to earn it.

There’s no doubt that Embiid, one of the top candidates for MVP so far, deserved this recognition. He’s been absolutely dominant, leading the Philadelphia 76ers to 1st place in the Eastern Conference at 19-10. Through 23 games, Embiid is averaging 29.7 points, 10.8 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.2 blocks a night.

His efficiency has been phenomenal, too, with a 66.1 True Shooting percentage. This is miles past his previous best of 59.3 in 2018-19, thanks to career-highs from all over the floor. He’s making 75.3 percent of his shots within 3 feet of the basket, torching opponents with his elite 55.2 percent stroke from mid-range, shooting 39.7 percent from three, and recording a ridiculous 11.3 free throw attempts per game (making 85.1 percent).

Embiid joins Bradley Beal, Kyrie Irving, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant as starters for the East. The Western Conference starters are LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Luka Doncic, Kawhi Leonard, and Nikola Jokic.

As for other members of the Sixers, Ben Simmons finished 11th in the fan vote for Eastern Conference backcourt players, but 6th in the player vote and 7th in the media vote — a weighted score of these three voting groups determines the rankings.

Tobias Harris missed out on the top 10 in the Eastern Conference frontcourt voting.

NBA head coaches will select the reserves for the All-Star teams, which will be announced on February 23, so you won’t have to wait too long to find out if Simmons and/or Harris manage to make the cut.