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The first returns for NBA All-Star voting are in and Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry is currently third among Western Conference guards for a starting spot in the 2014 NBA All-Star game.
Steph Curry is 3rd among Western Conference guards in the 1st All-Star results, released by the NBA. He's behind Chris Paul and Kobe Bryant.
— Rusty Simmons (@Rusty_SFChron) December 12, 2013
Among Western Conference front-court voting, Andre Iguodala ranks ninth and David Lee is 13th. KDurant, DHoward, BGriffin lead the way.
— Rusty Simmons (@Rusty_SFChron) December 12, 2013
Surely, you can't be surprised by social media-enabled fan voting buoying Kobe Bryant to the top of the list - it's not the first time an injured (albeit recently returned) star has floated to the top and probably won't be the last; aside from that quirk, Curry and Los Angeles Clippers point guard Chris Paul at the top of the Western guards looks about right.
And even if Curry doesn't win the popular vote, there's no way he gets snubbed from the bench this year.
As for the frontcourt, perhaps it would be nice to Iguodala get a nod for his value to the Warriors this year, but ninth is about as good as we could hope for in first returns given that he's been out due to injury. David Lee is a long-shot to put it generously.
Proof of Warriors fabnbase? Iguodala is 9th among West forwards. Ahead of Dirk.
— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) December 12, 2013
Warriors players Harrison Barnes, Andrew Bogut, and Klay Thompson were not among the top 10, but perhaps that isn't a surprise among us: in our GSoM poll on the day voting was first announced, 66% of us thought that two or three of the Warriors on the ballot should be selected to the All-Star game. With more games from the 2013-14 season to judge from, it's clear that two or three players is probably the best case but the 5% of us who voted that only one player should make the game were probably closer to the mark.
You can click here to see the full results as posted by the Oregonian, but I think the first returns also beg the following point: vote.
1st round of #NBAAllStar ballot returns come out tmrw. That said, now is a good time to vote for @StephenCurry30. http://t.co/iKlvtn4sdi
— Golden St. Warriors (@warriors) December 12, 2013