NBA All-Star Game 2012: 5 Players Who Could Replace Joe Johnson

Earlier today, star Hawks guard Joe Johnson had a MRI on his knee, casting into doubt whether he will be able to play in this weekend's All-Star Game. That would mean that David Stern will have to select a replacement for him, perhaps on short notice. Here are five players who could be his replacement Sunday in Orlando.

Rajon Rondo

I'm aware that Rondo plays the point, and Johnson is a two-guard. But the Eastern Conference already has Wade and Iguodala at the two, whereas the West has four men at the point.  

Rondo was touted as one of the notable omissions from the All-Star roster, and for good reason: He has more dishes per game than anyone in the East. He is also the floor leader of one of the NBA's flagship franchises

Brandon Jennings

I know that there are a lot of good Eastern point guards, and the Bucks are currently out of the playoff picture, but Jennings deserves some consideration.

Jennings is putting up 18.3 points a game, tied for third among Eastern Conference point guards (behind the two points already on the roster) and adds 5.2 assists. Jennings also adds the fourth-most value to his team among Eastern points.

Nick Young

Yeah, it seems pretty obvious that a Washington team that has been in the tank all season doesn't really deserve an All-Star. However, I put Nick Young forward as a candidate for one reason, and one reason only: He's the best Eastern Conference shooting guard not on the squad (though Ray Allen and Jason Richardson are also candidates).  

Young adds the third-most value to his team of Eastern Conference shooting guards (behind Johnson and Dwyane Wade) and is also third among Eastern twos in scoring (also behind Wade and Johnson).

Jeremy Lin

After several selections that make sense due to player aptitude, here's one that's all hype. In case you haven't noticed, the All-Star Game is the second biggest story this week. Lin is the first.  

As noted before, the East has fewer point guards than the West, so Lin would make sense at that level. And there is one sabermetric that supports the choice of Lin...he is averaging .182 win shares per 48, which is better than Johnson himself.

Josh Smith

I am fully aware that cornerman Josh Smith plays a completely different position than shooting guard Joe Johnson. However, Smith fills a couple of important niches.  

For one, being the multi-tool both-ends threat that he is, he is pretty clearly the best Eastern Conference player not on the squad. For two, playoff-bound Atlanta needs to be represented on the squad in some way.

And with regard to the positional argument, you could also cover by sliding swingman Paul Pierce over to the two slot.