For years NBA stars have publicly campaigned for the right to vote on awards.

It took some time, but the league listened and gave players the opportunity to do just that last month as part of a new All-Star voting format to help decide who should play in the upcoming All-Star game this Sunday at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Once a popularity contest, the All-Star voting process changed this year when the league gave fans, media members and players the right to vote to decide on who should go to the All-Star game. Fans make up 50 percent of the vote, while NBA players and media members each get 25 percent.

But after what took place, the NBA really needs to think about tweaking its system after a majority of NBA players made a mockery of the league with their respective votes.

A Big Joke

Remember during the 2015 All-Star media session when Kevin Durant told reporters that players should have the power to decide who should win awards such as MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, Sixth Man, among others.

“I don’t see why you (the media) have more power in voting than we do. We play against these guys every single night, we battle against these guys, we know what they say on the court, we know how they handle their teammates, we know how they approach the game, and our votes should count. … I don’t think you guys know as much we do, and I don’t see why you have more power than we do.”

So what happened when NBA players got the chance to vote?

The NBA has reported than 324 players participated in the voting process with nearly 300 players getting at least one vote which was given to them by either themselves or their teammates. In contrast, the media voted for a total of 32 candidates.

Incredibly, 154 of those NBA players left Durant off their ballot and 128 others didn’t even vote for LeBron James. Ben Simmons, the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft last year and who has been out with an injury, received three votes without even having stepped foot on the court. Mo Williams even got a vote despite being traded more time this year than minutes played.

“I am very disappointed in the players,” said Golden State head coach Steve Kerr who will be coaching the Western Conference in the All-Star game. “They’ve asked for a vote and a lot of them just made a mockery of it. I don’t know what the point is. … I saw all the guys who got votes and there were 50 guys on there who had no business getting votes. … I think if you’re going to give the players a vote, I think they should take it seriously.”

Although players, like Durant, are passionate about the All-Star voting process, a large majority of them could care less.

The funniest part in all of this is that while Durant called the media out for their so-called “bias”, they ended up essentially voting for all the same exact players.

In the West, the players and media nominated the exact same five starters in James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard, and Anthony Davis.

New Rules

First, the NBA needs to put a rule in place that players are not allowed to vote for themselves or their teammates.

Tony Allen, of the Memphis Grizzlies, voted for his entire team.

Second, the League needs stop players from voting for guys who haven’t even stepped foot on the court during the season. If anything, there should be a minimum threshold — say 20-25 games leading up to All-Star weekend that guys must play — in order to keep the nonsense nominations out.

Lastly, journalists should have no direct involvement in the beat they cover to help preserve it from becoming a glorified popularity contest.

Bottom Line: The NBA needs to seriously think about changing its All-Star voting rules if players are going to make a mockery of their new privileges.

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