Does Derrick Rose Have What It Takes to Be an All-Star?

With the 2010 NBA All-Star game starters being announced Thursday, fans (or what sometimes seems like an 11-year-old playing on the Internet) once again showed why the public should never be able to choose All-Stars outright.

Allen Iverson, who was actually on the Western Conference's ballot (from his Pete Myers-esque tenure with the Memphis Grizzlies) was chosen as the second starter for the Eastern Conference.

Cutting down on the voting gaffes, Steve Nash did make a nice run to finish as the Western Conference's second guard (behind Kobe Bryant) to beat out Tracy McGrady and the 46 minutes he's seen on the floor so far this season.

Although it may have been interesting to see what logo he would've chosen for the back of his jersey, I think the fans made the right choice to push somebody ahead of T-Mac.

Now was Nash the right choice over say a Chris Paul or Deron Williams? That debate's for a whole 'nother day.

As for now, I found myself asking a question that spurned this very article.

Could and should Derrick Rose be selected to his first All-Star game?

First with the could.

While Allen Iverson has recently gone through quite a few scenarios where he's felt unwanted, he was still the second most popular guard in the Eastern Conference (behind Dwayne Wade) and will be making the start if he feels healthy enough to do so.

Iverson's popularity (and obviously not his 14.4/4.4 line this season) stole a spot from two up-and-coming point guards, Rose and Boston's Rajon Rondo.

And although Iverson has been bothered by a sore knee and previously said that he would consider his health before deciding whether to play in his 10th All-Star game, he has to be thinking that his chances for such an opportunity have to be wearing thin.

That basically leaves the Eastern Conference with one open spot for three All-Star caliber point guards in Rose, Rondo, and Cleveland's Mo Williams.

With Williams shelved for the next four to six weeks with a shoulder injury, it's likely that the spot will come down to Rose and Rondo, whom have already shown signs of a budding rivalry in their early careers.

So barring a dropout by Iverson, the second question comes down to who should be chosen for the back-up spot, Rondo or Rose?

In 39 games so far this season, Rondo's averaging 14 points, 9.6 assists, and 2.5 steals per game for a Celtics team that's second in the Eastern Conference despite injuries to some key players throughout the season.

For Rose, the stat line is slightly different, but for good reason.

In 40 games he's averaging 19.1 points and six assists per game while assuming a much bigger scoring role on a team that lacks production on the offensive end.

While Rondo has the luxury of getting his points as they come, Rose is forced to be a scorer.

However, with Rondo's assist total comes the assumption that getting the ball to guys like Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Rasheed Wallace is overly advantageous to guys like Luol Deng, John Salmons, Tyrus Thomas, and Joakim Noah.

So do you give the nod to the guy with the lessened role on the better team or the guy with the better offensive numbers who's forced into a larger role on a less talented team?

My vote would go to Rose based solely on the fact that he averages five more points per game, and if he had a better supporting cast around him, he would probably see his assists jump closer to that double-digit range.

That being said, I'd much rather see Iverson sit this All-Star game out like he did in '07 and let Rose and Rondo (who both deserve it) take the reins.

Either way, I have a feeling we'll be seeing many more future All-Star backcourts headlined by Derrick Rose and Rajon Rondo.