For the second consecutive year, Joel “The Process” Embiid has been named an All-Star starter. Embiid finished third among Eastern Conference frontcourt players in the fan vote with 2,783,833 tallies behind only Giannis Antetokounmpo (4,375,747) and Kawhi Leonard (3,580,531). Embiid, along with Giannis and Kawhi, earned 99 media votes (someone inexplicably voted for Jayson Tatum, Pascal Siakam, and Nikola Vucevic). Wrapping up the voting, Embiid’s 186 player votes solidified a third-place finish behind Giannis (269) and Kawhi (189).

Ben Simmons finished in a tie for third place among guards with Dwyane Wade, the latter of whom technically finished ahead of Simmons due to the fan vote tiebreaker. Simmons garnered the fourth-most votes for an Eastern Conference guard (1,184,221) behind Kyrie Irving (3,881,766), Wade (2,208,598), and Kemba Walker (1,395,330). Simmons finished with the third-most media votes (25) behind Irving (100) and Walker (48). The player vote went very differently for Simmons, and could have played a role in his finishing behind Wade. Ben only received 43 player votes (fifth among guards) behind Victor Oladipo (58), Bradley Beal (62), Kemba Walker (98), and Kyrie Irving (190).

Kudos to Embiid for his second-straight All-Star start. It would appear, barring some unforeseen circumstances, that Ben Simmons will make his first All-Star Game appearance. With the news that Oladipo has a ruptured quadriceps tendon, Simmons’ chances are even better. Jimmy Butler’s status remains up in the air. All-Star reserves will be announced next week.