The NBA announced the starters for this year’s All-Star game on Thursday, and they’re just about what everyone expected: Stephen Curry, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Blake Griffin and Kevin Love in the Western Conference, and Kyrie Irving, Dwyane Wade, Paul George, Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James in the Eastern Conference.

Let’s get the obvious part out of the way: Kobe making it is a complete joke. He’s played six games this season, and has already said he’s not playing in the All-Star game this year. But he was never not going to make it. The Lakers are the most popular team in the league and Kobe is one of the most iconic athletes in the world. Since he won’t play, the NBA will name a replacement, likely someone who is deserving.

Other than Kobe, the fans mostly got it right, and what they got wrong isn’t egregious. LaMarcus Aldridge has been the best power forward in the NBA this season, and he’ll undoubtedly make the team as a reserve. Griffin was always going to get more votes than him — he plays for a more popular team and his Kia commercials are on all the time. But Griffin getting the nod is fine — he’s having a terrific year and would have made the team as a reserve if Aldridge had made it as a starter.

In the East, the most noteworthy snub is Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert, a frontrunner for Defensive Player of the Year. But like Aldridge, Hibbert is a lock to make the team as a reserve. More fans are going to vote for Anthony. He’s the bigger name and plays for the New York Knicks. But Anthony’s also having a great year (just about the only Knick who is), and he has a good enough reputation with coaches that he would have been named a reserve if he’d been left out of the starting lineup.

When fans vote for All-Star teams, there are always going to be a few ridiculous choices. Kobe making it is no different from Yao Ming being voted a starter in 2011 (when he played five games) or Allen Iverson winning the fan vote in 2010 (when he washed out of the league). Injured players get replaced by deserving players. Love replaced Yao in 2011 and Brook Lopez replaced Rajon Rondo last year. The world went on.

Plus, maybe we should give the fans a little credit — they don’t always make the obvious picks. This year, Curry beat out Chris Paul (who is also hurt, but is one of the most recognizable names in the sport). And Love beat out Dwight Howard, who had seemed like a lock. In both cases, the more deserving player beat out the bigger name.

All-Star debates are fun, and the snubs discussion will be worth having in a few weeks, when the full teams are announced. But the backlash to the fan vote is overblown.