10 Potential All-Star Snubs: East
Caron Butler, Dime #36It’s never too early to start talking All-Star. With Rajon Rondo, Devin Harris, Derrick Rose and Jose Calderon each throwing their names into the Eastern Conference mix with strong performances in the season’s first couple of months, Allen Iverson’s midseason return to the conference where he was once an All-Star lock, and the looming possibility of Yi Jianlian stealing a starting spot, this year’s game will be just like every year: a few deserving guys will get snubbed.
Given the typical All-Star roster set-up (at least four guards, four forwards, two centers, and two wild-card spots), I’d imagine there can be an absolute maximum of six guards taken, or six forwards, or four centers, but most likely it’ll be 5-5-2.
Starting with the East and later tackling the West, here are some players facing the possibility of being snubbed come decision-time:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Likely starters: Dwyane Wade and Allen Iverson (guards), LeBron James and Kevin Garnett (forwards), Dwight Howard (center).
Potential snubs:
Vince Carter (22.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 4.9 apg)
Pro: Top-10 in scoring, and close to matching last year’s 20-5-5 numbers across the board, which only four players achieved.
Con: With Devin Harris as everyone’s trendy All-Star pick, he should take one of New Jersey’s unwritten allotment of spots. And if Yi steals one, there’s no way three Nets make the squad.
Derrick Rose (18.5 ppg, 6.1 apg)
Pro: Already one of the League’s top point guards and a highlight-reel regular.
Con: He’s a rookie. Ask Chris Paul how that turned out in 2006.
Ray Allen (19.2 ppg, 53 3PM)
Pro: Leading scorer on the best team in the NBA, and the League leader in threes made. He lit up last year’s All-Star Game, which may stick in the minds of the coaches.
Con: Still considered the third-best guy on the Celtics and somewhat one-dimensional.
Jose Calderon (12.8 ppg, 9.6 apg)
Pro: Second in the NBA in assists.
Con: He’s been good, but not quite living up to a lot of the preseason hype. The Raptors have been bad enough to get one coach fired, and Calderon’s shoddy defense is one glaring liability.
Danny Granger (23.1 ppg, 4.8 rpg)
Pro: Carrying a better-than-expected Pacers squad to some high-profile upsets. Has the support of some national TV talking heads.
Con: Between LeBron, KG, Bosh and Pierce, could simply fall victim to the numbers game and more popular/established competitors.
Ray Allen (photo. Jordan Brand)Caron Butler (21.9 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 1.7 spg)
Pro: In the major categories, putting up equal or better numbers than last year, when he was named to his second straight All-Star Game.
Con: The Wizards are getting better, but still generally awful.
Tayshaun Prince (15.5 ppg, 6.6 rpg)
Pro: He’s been Detroit’s best and most consistent player on both ends of the floor.
Con: A regular on the annual snub list — he was the one left out when four Pistons made the squad a couple years ago — it wouldn’t be a shock to see it happen again.
Rashard Lewis (18.7 ppg, 6 rpg, 51 3PM)
Pro: Second in the NBA in threes made. Has at least three game-winners on his resume already; at Dallas, at Philly and at Indiana.
Con: Hedo Turkoglu is still seen as the engine that makes Orlando’s offense go.
Zydrunas Ilgauskas (15.2 ppg, 7.8 rpg)
Pro: The Cavs are at worst a Top-5 team, and not a one-man show anymore. If they deserve a second All-Star, it’s Z. After Dwight Howard, there aren’t too many worthy centers in the East.
Con: Z’s style isn’t exactly in line with the All-Star Game style. We’ve all been so conditioned to view Cleveland as LeBron and the LeBroninites, Ilgauskas could be forgotten come voting time.
Emeka Okafor (11.9 ppg, 10.6 rpg, 1.7 bpg)
Pro: Numbers are on his side. Three games of 15-plus boards, two 20-10 efforts, ranks fourth in the NBA in rebounding, and one of only seven players currently averaging at least 10 points, 10 boards and 1.5 blocks.
Con: The Bobcats are terrible and no one watches them.
December 8th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
JCARR says:
Emeka = NO Way. Harris?
Yi has the biggest army of fans behind him.
December 8th, 2008 at 3:11 pm
Richard Wellner says:
If Rondo gets an appearance, I’m gonna slap all of you in the face. Harris needs to be in there for sure.
December 8th, 2008 at 3:15 pm
loot says:
yall forgot about devin harris
December 8th, 2008 at 3:17 pm
mules says:
If you’re gonna hold Big Z’s style of play against him because it not the fast-paced, up & down style typically associated with the All-Star Game then you can’t really hold Calderon’s defense (or lack of) against him…he’d fit right in with the heavily offense-oriented ASG.
December 8th, 2008 at 3:21 pm
dagwaller says:
Keep Derrick Rose and Caron Butler out of there (this coming from a Bulls/Wiz fan). Rose is stacking his stats on a team that asks him to carry the load offensively, and is essentially a SG that brings the ball up. That would be miserable in the All-Star game. I also can’t bring myself to vote for Caron, given how terrible the Wiz have been.
Big Z isn’t going to get left off – there’s no center in the East better than him, outside of Dwight Howard. I doubt that Jermaine O’Neal will steal his sport. Emeka is the only interior presence on his team – I HOPE that he gets numbers like that.
December 8th, 2008 at 3:26 pm
JCARR says:
Chris Bosh!!!!!!! ???? where is he on the list?????
December 8th, 2008 at 3:30 pm
K.i.n.G. says:
my all star bench
C – Chris Bosh
F – Caron Butler
F – Paul Pierce
G – Vince Carter
G – Devin Harris
Wild – Joe Johnson
Wild – Danny Granger
I do think new jersey deserves two players from their team because not only did everyone believe that new jersey wouldn’t be in the playoff picture, people strongly believed they would come dead last in the east! As I write this new jersey is tied with detroit for 5th place in the east. Vince and Devin are both playing at an elite level and both would be my all-stars
Dime hit it on the head for why Derrick Rose can’t be an all-star. Rajon Rondo, though is playing stellar basketball, is still the fourth best player on the team, and Jose is the point guard for a team currently not in the playoffs, end of discussion.
I, however, won’t be surprised if four Celtics make the all-star game, like detroit did a couple years ago…
December 8th, 2008 at 3:31 pm
Austin Burton says:
@loot + @JCARR — It’s a list of potential snubs; I think Bosh and Devin are pretty close to locks to make the team at this point.
December 8th, 2008 at 3:32 pm
K.i.n.G. says:
at JCARR,
Chris Bosh won’t get snubbed, that’s why he’s not on the list.
December 8th, 2008 at 3:32 pm
Big Sia says:
Austin’s talking about potential snubs.
There’s no way Harris is getting snubbed. The league thrives off of break out seasons like this.
But theres no way VC is getting looked over either… Yes, 3 Nets will make the all-star team.
December 8th, 2008 at 3:35 pm
K.i.n.G. says:
lol yi will only make it if he gets more votes than kg and even though yi has a lot of fans, kg does as well.
December 8th, 2008 at 3:37 pm
aj says:
@AB
You should put the other “locks” on a line below the starters. Just wait til the Celts crazies read this and see no PP listed anywhere in the article. They’ll go nuts.
Gimmie Vince, Caron, and Big Z outta your list.
December 8th, 2008 at 3:39 pm
Jeronimo says:
I’m against democracy when it comes to voting for All-Star players. Yi an All-Star? Get real!
December 8th, 2008 at 3:43 pm
Austin Burton says:
For what it’s worth, LeBron and KG are both hugely popular in China, where most of Yi’s potential votes will come from. So hopefully not everyone will check Yi’s name.
December 8th, 2008 at 3:45 pm
Marc Stein says:
I can’t wait to see Allen Iverson retire; I don’t care how many points he puts up, he’s a total liability in all other facets of the game (and don’t even say his Defense is that good, if anything it’s overrated… too many steals can sometimes indicate a gambling defender and we’ve ALL played with THAT gambling defender !!!)
December 8th, 2008 at 3:45 pm
JCARR says:
Granger shouldn’t be a potential snub. He’s in.
December 8th, 2008 at 3:46 pm
Marc Stein says:
ALLEN IVERSON starting in the All Star game.. what a shame.
December 8th, 2008 at 3:47 pm
aj says:
Is Joe Johnson a lock?
Is David Lee an All-Star?
What about Elton Brand?
December 8th, 2008 at 3:50 pm
original2k9 says:
nah forreal the NBA needs to do sumthin bout these delusional Chinese voters… i dont know what tho,
aint much you can do about that within the realm of democracy
December 8th, 2008 at 3:54 pm
Amar says:
the only thing that will stop the chinese from having a big impact would be if there was an indian (dot, not feather) in the nba, as there are just as many people in india, and more cell phones/internet users. (and democracy, take that China!)
December 8th, 2008 at 3:54 pm
barons beard says:
If Yi gets voted to the all-star squad, then its time to scrap the fan vote
Just have people who actually know the game (coaches, media bods, maybe even players) nominate the best 12 players regardless of position (outside of a starting 5)
Players should get picked on merit, its shouldn’t be a popularity contest
December 8th, 2008 at 4:50 pm
AY says:
david lee, if he keeps going at this pace starting at center, will be a snub. Starting at center since zbo is gone: 18pts, 15boards. The knicks are hanging around 500, this was one of the nba’s worst teams last year and they’ve only subtracted guys. Playing undersized center without a play run for him, certainly more deserving than derrick rose.
December 8th, 2008 at 4:50 pm
Big V says:
Is Yi even that big in China? I have no idea.
No way Yi makes the All-Star team as a reserve.
December 8th, 2008 at 4:54 pm
Gerard says:
Glad to see others recognizing Big Zydrunas, he deserves it, especially considering his commitment to Cleveland.
December 8th, 2008 at 4:56 pm
Big V says:
Ray has been killing it recently. If he keeps this up, he’s gotta get a reserve slot. He’s been the most consistent Celtic over the last 10 games or so.
December 8th, 2008 at 5:36 pm
dagwaller says:
Big Z is one of my favorite players, Gerard.
That having been said, AY just made a good point for David Lee. I had completely forgotten about him. I’d put him in over Emeka, just based on team success and because of how much Emeka got paid over the summer to not improve at all.
December 8th, 2008 at 8:20 pm
bone0315 says:
I don’t know why everyone is freaking out about this whole Yi thing. If it was a big deal, don’t you all think he would have made the ASG LAST year? It’s not his first year in the League and this same worry popped up last year. Besides, if it does happen, Stern will somehow “fix it”
As for potential snubs, I think the East team is pretty clear-cut with no snubs. Assuming the Starting 5 above, your reserves are….:
G – Harris, Rose, Joe Johnson
F – Pierce, Bosh, Granger
C – Rasheed
Pretty cut and dry to me.
December 8th, 2008 at 9:45 pm
mavid says:
Gotta agree with bone0315, seems pretty clear cut:
Guards:
AI, Wade, Joe Johnson, Devin Harris, Rose
Forwards:
Lebron, Pierce, Granger, KG, Bosh
Centers:
Howard and Sheed
Depending on how he plays, MAYBE Josh Smith make some noise.
December 8th, 2008 at 10:04 pm
Billy Sunday says:
I dont think Iverson should be an all star
December 8th, 2008 at 11:29 pm
tim says:
I think Prince should make it this year…I think he’s consistently been a good player in his career…he stepped it up early in the season…now he’s not….but he should be on it.
December 9th, 2008 at 8:21 am
mavid says:
“I dont think Iverson should be an all star”
I agree, but unfortunately it doesnt work like that. I wish the NBA would use the NFL style voting:
Fans count 1/3
Coaches count 1/3
Players count 1/3