LeBron James, Kevin Durant Lead 2023 NBA All-Star Fan Voting After Second Returns

• LeBron James leads the 2023 NBA All-Star fan votes after the second return and is set to make his 19th All-Star appearance.
• Kevin Durant leads in the Eastern Conference and is followed by Giannis Antetokounmpo
• Stephen Curry leads among all guards and is set to make his 9th All-Star appearance.

LeBron James is still the leading vote-getter for the 2023 NBA All-Star in the second return from the fans vote.

The LA Lakers superstar is on pace for his 19th All-Star appearance in February and will match the great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. James is having another terrific season at 38 years old despite the Lakers' struggles.

James is also on track to break NBA's all-time scoring record which has been held by Abdul-Jabbar at some point next month if he maintains his current streak.

The four-time NBA champion is averaging 29 points, 8.4 rebounds and 6.8 assists this season. However, his excellent performances haven't helped the Lakers who are missing Anthony Davis for the last few weeks.

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James leads All-Star second return

The four-time MVP had 4,825,229 votes entering Thursday, which puts him on track to be a captain for the sixth consecutive year. Therefore, he leads all voting, per ESPN. Kevin Durant is second with 4,509,238 and leads in the Easter Conference.

The top three frontcourt players and top two guards in each conference will be chosen as starters, while the leading overall vote-getters from each conference will serve as captains and choose their teams.

In the Western Conference, Denver's Nikola Jokic remained in second (3,441,893), and the Lakers' Anthony Davis remained third (2,950,563).

Durant leads East frontcourt players, just ahead of Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo (4,467,306). Celtics star Jayson Tatum passed Philadelphia's Joel Embiid this week for the third spot. Tatum garnered 3,281,124 votes, while Embiid got 3,248,733.

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Warriors star Stephen Curry leads all guards with 3,901,808 votes followed by Luka Doncic with 3,649,647 votes. Kyrie leads all guards in the East with 3,024,833.

Votes from fans count for 50% of the starters balloting. A media ballot counts for 25%, and the ballots by NBA players count for the other 25%.

James on Doncic

Sports Brief earlier reported on James heaping praise on Dallas Mavericks star Doncic who stunned the Lakers with an epic performance in a double-overtime win.

Doncic was sensational throughout the game, finishing his 10th triple-double of the season with 35 points, 14 rebounds and 13 assists. The Slovenian also delivered a clutch performance to steal the win.

James' post-game remark summarized what the young guard is all about.

"Big-time players make big-time shots. It's that simple."