When the full rosters for the 2024 NBA All-Star Game were revealed, there were more than a few players that felt they had been snubbed for a selection by the coaches.
Trae Young was the most prominent of those, as he’s averaging 27.3 points and 10.9 assists per game, but was left off of the roster by the coaches in a crowded Eastern Conference backcourt race. Young has gotten support from LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and others for his candidacy as an injury replacement in the last week, and with Joel Embiid and Julius Randle both sidelined through the All-Star break, he was expected to get the call to go to Indy and represent the East.
The bigger question was who would be the second replacement, as there were plenty who felt the Celtics deserved a third All-Star, either Kristaps Porzingis or Derrick White, but Adam Silver ultimately decided on the Raptors young star Scottie Barnes as the second replacement alongside Young.
Toronto’s Scottie Barnes and Atlanta’s Trae Young have been named by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver as injury replacements on the Eastern Conference team for the 2024 NBA All-Star Game.
The two players will replace Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid and New York’s Julius Randle. pic.twitter.com/ZkP7gZmbhj
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) February 6, 2024
Along with Porzingis and White, Cleveland’s run over the last month to the two-seed in the East led some to believe Jarrett Allen was worthy of a selection, but the commissioner chose to roll with two young stars having terrific seasons on sub-.500 teams instead. Barnes is averaging 20.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 5.8 assists per game for the Raptors, who have chosen to build around him by finally tearing down their old foundation ahead of the deadline.
As for who will move into the starting lineup for the East with Embiid out, that will be up to Doc Rivers.