Sixers' Joel Embiid named NBA All-Star reserve
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Sixers center Joel Embiid was named an All-Star for the sixth time in his career Thursday, the NBA said.
Embiid was named a reserve after getting snubbed from a starting spot. It's the first time Embiid will be a reserve since his first All-Star honors in 2018.
Embiid was named a reserve along with Jaylen Brown, Bam Adebayo, Julius Randle, DeMar DeRozan, Jrue Holiday and Tyrese Haliburton.
As of Thursday night, Embiid leads the league in scoring with 33.5 points per game, just ahead of Luke Doncic. Embiid is also averaging 10.1 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game.
Embiid currently has the Sixers at 33-17, which ranks third in the Eastern Conference behind the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks.
The Sixers defeated the Orlando Magic on Wednesday night, 105-94, and will travel to San Antonio to play the Spurs on Friday night.
Meanwhile, Sixers guard James Harden was not named to the All-Star team for the first time since 2012, and his teammate didn't approve of it.
Y'all got some explaining to do @NBA
— Joel “Troel” Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) February 3, 2023
Harden ranks second on the team in points per game at 21.4 and leads the team in assists with 11 per contest. He's also averaging 6.4 rebounds per game and shooting about 40% from 3-point range.