NBA All-Star Game 2012: Which First-Timers Will Be One-Hit Wonders?

Derrick Coleman, Mark Jackson, Vlade Divac and Charles Oakley all share a dubious distinction. Each was selected for an All-Star team once and only once, never to return again.

A few current players look poised to join them. Kenyon Martin's prime was robbed by injury, and he won't be back to the big game.

The same goes for Michael Redd.

Meanwhile, Gerald Wallace will play a more limited role for the rest of his career, and no one knows what's going on with Devin Harris.

Metta World Peace? Add him to the list.

Which of 2012's first-time selections will also become one-hit wonders? Who, instead, is destined to become a regular at the NBA All-Star festivities?

LaMarcus Aldridge

Barring the kind of career misfortune that's plagued other Trail Blazers, LaMarcus Aldridge should find his way to at least another three or four All-Star games.

Many, including former teammate Andre Miller, thought Aldridge should have received an invitation last year.

The 6'11'' forward/center is averaging 22.3 points and 8.3 rebounds a game this season and has watched his production spike over the last two years thanks to a stronger frame and a more diversified offensive game.

Still only 26, Aldridge has emerged as Portland's premier star and should anchor the team's post presence for years to come.

With Marcus Camby inching towards retirement and Greg Oden's future never more uncertain, Aldridge may become even more valuable sooner rather than later.

Thanks to his shooting range and good size, Aldridge is the type of guy who could continue to play well even as his athletic ability loses something to age.

While he will likely have to compete for All-Star spots with the likes of Kevin Love and Blake Griffin for years to come, chances are that Dirk Nowitzki will soon join Tim Duncan as a really, really good former All-Star.

In other words, there will almost certainly be a spot for LaMarcus.

Andrew Bynum

This should be the first of many All-Star games for the 24-year-old Andrew Bynum. The seven-foot standout has quickly become an elite center in a league that is truly desperate for good centers.

How desperate?

Enough that the Warriors gave Kwame Brown $7 million to bring his "talents" to Golden State this season.

There's almost no chance Bynum won't rank among his conference's top two centers for a long time to come.

Almost no chance.

The prolific injury history that has afflicted his still young career is cause for some doubt. On the other hand, the fact that Bynum has overcome those injuries to put together such an impressive 2012 campaign should put most of those doubts to rest.

Bynum has the size and strength to remain a perennial All-Star. As impressive as his production has been this year, it could get even better.

He's averaging career highs across the board: 16.3 points, 12.8 rebounds, 2.0 blocks and 34.6 minutes. With a still-improving post-up game, Bynum reasons to become a 20-plus scorer in the not too distant future.

If he stays in Los Angeles, he will become a more prominent option as Kobe Bryant ages (if he ever ages), and if he's moved for the likes of Dwight Howard, he will become an instant franchise cornerstone.

Marc Gasol

At 27, Marc Gasol is hitting his prime and will continue to perform for a long time. He has been a model of consistency in his four seasons with Memphis and justifiably earned praise from all corners.

However, as far as All-Star selections go, there's a good chance he'll be a one-hit wonder. This isn't a knock on Gasol, and for its part, Memphis should be represented at All-Star weekend by Rudy Gay for the better part of his tenure with the Grizzlies.

Though Gasol will probably continue playing like an All-Star, that doesn't mean he'll continue to produce the kind of numbers that demand a ticket to the actual game. Without Zach Randolph in the lineup this season, Gasol is averaging a career-high 38 minutes a contest. He's taking almost three more shots per game than he did last season when Randolph was in the fold.

Should Memphis become a regular contender in the Western Conference over the next couple of years, there's also the chance that Gasol will see his minutes regulated more carefully in anticipation of long postseason runs.

Minutes will matter for Gasol.

Per 48 minutes of play, Gasol only scores 18.9 a game. That's less than Al Jefferson (27.9), Tim Duncan (24.0) and Marcin Gortat (22.7), all centers in the Western Conference who didn't make the All-Star team. Those same three would outpace him in rebounding as well.

While it's unlikely Duncan will ever see big minutes again outside of the playoffs, Jefferson and Gortat will likely challenge Gasol for that backup center spot on the All-Star team year in and year out. With Bynum also a lock for the foreseeable future, a return to the game is anything but guaranteed for Marc Gasol.

Roy Hibbert

Roy Hibbert has improved significantly in each of his four seasons out of Georgetown. He's in the best shape of his young career, and now that he's playing over 30 minutes a night for the first time, his production has been undeniable.

Hibbert is also playing efficiently.

He's making 51 percent of his field-goal attempts and boasts a pretty impressive 19.77 player efficiency rating. If he continues to improve according to his current trajectory, odds are that this will not be Hibbert's last All-Star game. Indiana has the payroll flexibility to match any offers Hibbert receives this offseason as a restricted free agent, and it's unlikely the up-and-coming team will let such a key part go.

If Dwight Howard winds up in the Western Conference via trade or free agency, Hibbert's return to the game may become that much easier.

It won't be a shoo-in, however.

Hibbert can thank Brook Lopez's injured right foot for making the competition among Eastern Conference centers a bit easier this season. 

He can also thank the Detroit Pistons for being absolutely terrible. Otherwise, Greg Monroe's 16.7 points, 9.8 rebounds and mind-blowing 23.2 PER would be attracting far more attention. Unfortunately for Monroe, good players on bad teams tend to get overlooked come All-Star weekend.

Hibbert will have to outperform both players next season to hold on to his spot. And even if Dwight Howard does wind up in the West, there's always the chance he'll merely be trading places with Andrew Bynum, giving the Eastern Conference another perennial All-Star.

Even the 76ers' 23-year-old Spencer Hawes could give Hibbert a run for his money. Already one of the best passing bigs in the game, Hawes is poised to become an increasingly featured piece in Philadelphia.

Hibbert will be back, but he'll have to work hard if he wants this to become a pattern.

Andre Iguodala

Andre Iguodala is a very good player, and while he's perhaps the perfect complementary piece for Doug Collins' ensemble cast in Philadelphia, he probably won't be back to the All-Star game.

If for no other reason, Collins' team concept has translated into Iggy only taking 10.4 shots a game, down from the career-high 15.6 he put up four seasons ago. Iguodala averaged almost 20 points per contest that year, but his production has since declined markedly.

Nor has Andre been especially efficient. His 43 percent shooting is the lowest of his career.

There's a sense that Iguodala was voted in this season in something of a "career achievement" gesture, making amends for the years he just missed the cut.

There is also the sense that this may be his last chance.

Unless Iguodala's hefty contract is traded any time soon, he will have at least a couple more seasons in Philadelphia. And with the success Philadelphia has had under Collins, don't expect any major changes to the game plan.

By the time Iggy can move on from the 76ers, he'll be over 30 and perhaps content to re-sign and continue playing the role to which he's become accustomed. If he does part ways, he's unlikely to resurface as much of a franchise player.

One of the best on-the-ball defenders in the game, Iguodala will continue to make a convincing case from year to year. Even as his scoring has subsided, he remains adept at getting his teammates involved, creating plays and doing the little things that help teams win.

Unfortunately, others will make convincing cases as well, and the trajectory of Iguodala's production suggests he may be passed over.

It would be premature to completely write off another All-Star selection, but don't be at all surprised if this is Andre Iguodala's last.

Luol Deng

Luol Deng has a few things going for him. 

He's still only 26 years old. He plays for a successful team that garners plenty of attention. And he plays with Derrick Rose, which would make a lot of guys look like All-Stars.

Like Iguodala, this selection comes in one of Deng's comparatively less productive seasons. He's averaged more than 17 points per game in four seasons but averages only 15.9 this year.

His 15.84 player efficiency rating isn't especially impressive when compared to the likes of non-All-Stars like Ryan Anderson (22.71), teammate Carlos Boozer (20.52), Kevin Garnett (19.86), Josh Smith (19.31) or Danny Granger (17.44).

Bulls fans will quickly remind us that numbers don't mean everything, and rightly so. Deng is an outstanding defender, and clearly there's a reason Tom Thibodeau plays him over 38 minutes a game.

Nevertheless, the aforementioned list of forwards will make it difficult for Deng to repeat as an All-Star. Of that list, only Garnett approaches the twilight of his career. The others are young and, like Deng, very much in their respective primes.

Oh and LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony certainly aren't going anywhere.

It may be a bit harsh to anoint Deng the next one-hit wonder, but he will have what one might call a "Tony Parker relationship" with the All-Star game. Parker will play in his fourth game this year, but only two of his selections came consecutively.

As is often the case with good players on talented rosters, their contributions go unnoticed from time to time. Deng may well be an All-Star again, but don't expect him to be a regular.