2012 NBA All-Star Roster: 7 Players Who Will Dazzle Fans in Orlando

The All-Star Game is already sneaking up on us, and the game should be a great one as the starters are already named and the reserves will be named later today. 

This game should be an exciting one as there is a kind of "changing of the guard" going on with some of the perennial All-Stars like Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, Tim Duncan and Dirk Nowitzki not expected to make it and younger talent will taking their place. 

Who are the stars who are going to shine the brightest on the All-Star stage? Here are seven you can expect to play big. 

Tyson Chandler

I expect Tyson Chandler to get in as the backup center. His performance over the season has been highly impressive. He is third in the NBA in win shares with 4.7. His true shooting percentage is .748. 

Chandler will be huge on a roster that is fairly devoid of big men. He'll be grabbing some serious rebounds and I expect with his better free-throw shooting, he'll be getting the minutes down the stretch. 

Blake Griffin

Some people say that all Blake Griffin does is dunk. While that's not entirely true, he does do a lot of dunking. Is there something wrong with that? Another way of saying that is "all he does is take the highest-percentage shot in basketball." 

Look, that's the goal! 

Griffin is a spectacular dunker and he'll have some beauties in the All-Star Game, particularly with his own point guard starting with him.

Look for some high-flying acrobatics from Blake "The Quake" Griffin. 

Kobe Bryant

Kobe Bryant will have a huge first half, but then he'll shock the world by deferring in the second half to Chris Paul and Kevin Durant. 

Why would Kobe do something like that, you ask? 

Because he can. 

Kevin Durant

Kevin Durant is the two-time defending scoring champion and this year he's having a career high in field-goal percentage. Last year he scored 34 points in the All-Star Game. Arguably, he could have been the MVP of the game. 

This year he'll have another high-scoring game, but not quite as high. Look for him to be in the running for MVP. 

Chris Paul

Giving Chris Paul an All-Star team to play with is like giving Chuck Norris an armory—it's dangerous. Look for Paul to be scoring and facilitating with full lethal effect. 

Paul is the All-Star Game's all-time leader in assists per game with 10.5. Look for him to put up at least that many this year. 

Derrick Rose

Derrick Rose is a player that is genuinely honored to be in the All-Star Game. In his previous two trips he's been tentative in his approach, almost as though he's still awed by being there. 

As the reigning MVP of the league, look for that to change this year. Rose will pick up the East and carry them in the fourth quarter as he plays with his typical aggressiveness.

He'll be in the running for All-Star MVP. 

LeBron James

Last year LeBron James had 29 points, 10 assists and 12 boards becoming the second player to get a triple-double. The other was by Michael Jordan. 

He could do it for a second consecutive year. This year's team promises to be highly athletic and versatile, the kinds of players that LeBron is so adept at getting points for. 

He's having his best year ever, and he should have his best All-Star Game yet as well. James will be absolutely magical and he'll win the MVP.