NBA All-Star Game 2015: Players Most Deserving of Starting Spots
Fan voting in all-star games is a joke. It only opens the door to ballot-box stuffing in favor of players with large followings in one area of the world, and it usually robs a deserving player of a spot. This season's voting process is no exception.
The most glaring example currently is in the Western Conference, where Los Angeles Lakers legend and future Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant is seemingly set to start in the backcourt.
This is not a Bash-Kobe campaign, but there's no way Bryant deserves to be starting in the All-Star Game based on his work this season. Ultimately, the current season is supposed to be what a player's worthiness is based on.
Bleacher Report's Kelly Scaletta supports this concept. He writes:
"There’s no point in parsing here. Harden unequivocally deserves the nod over Bryant. So do Chris Paul, Damian Lillard, Klay Thompson, Russell Westbrook and Mike Conley. And that’s where the real issue is. It’s not a problem that Bryant is getting an honor he doesn’t deserve; it’s that other players aren’t getting honors they do deserve.
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Bryant is having a good comeback campaign, and if he isn't shut down at some point, he could very well win Comeback Player of the Year. Although, the Chicago Bulls' Derrick Rose could have something to say about that if he explodes in the second half of the season.
Still, Bryant's averages of 22.3 points, 5.6 rebounds and 5.7 assists are noteworthy. However, it doesn't take an NBA Rhodes Scholar to know that the Houston Rockets' James Harden is far more deserving. Harden is leading the NBA in scoring at 27.2 points per game.
He's also dishing 6.7 assists and grabbing 5.5 rebounds. Harden is also fifth in the league in steals, despite his penchant to roam on the defensive end of the floor.
He's a leading candidate for NBA MVP, and the Rockets have clearly been more successful than the Lakers.
I get it.
Laker Nation and Mamba fans desperately want Bryant in the game. His career is winding down, blah, blah, blah. His participation in the game isn't the problem. As was mentioned previously, he's having a solid year. That said, there's a status symbol associated with being named a starter.
Based on this season, Harden deserves to accompany the Golden State Warriors' Stephen Curry in the West's first five. Here's a look at the players leading in fan votes and the guys I believe are most deserving of the starting nods.
Just below the table is a closer look at the other players who are on track to be snubbed by fan voting.
| Guards: John Wall, Washington Wizards | |
| Guards: Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat | Jimmy Butler, Chicago Bulls |
| Frontcourt: LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers | |
| Frontcourt: Pau Gasol, Chicago Bulls | |
| Frontcourt: Carmelo Anthony, N.Y. Knicks | |
| West Top Vote-Getters | More Deserving |
| Guards: Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors | |
| Guards: Kobe Bryant, L.A. Lakers | James Harden, Houston Rockets |
| Frontcourt: Anthony Davis, New Orleans Pelicans | |
| Frontcourt: Blake Griffin, L.A. Clippers | DeMarcus Cousins, Sacramento Kings |
| Frontcourt: Marc Gasol, Memphis Grizzlies | LaMarcus Aldridge, Portland Trail Blazers |
The Other Potential Snubs
Let's preface this section by establishing that the three-frontcourt-positions format is crazy. It always seems to create a disjointed lineup. If the right players are elected to start in this flawed system, the same thing will happen again this year.
Statistically, the Sacramento Kings' Cousins has been the best center in the NBA this season. He's the only player in the NBA in the top five in scoring (24) and rebounding (12.7). Honestly speaking, that fact presents a big enough case for him to be ahead of both the L.A. Clippers' Blake Griffin and Memphis Grizzlies' Marc Gasol.
The Kings haven't had the team success that the Clips and Grizz have enjoyed, but this is the All-Star Game, not an MVP vote.
Cousins should be starting.
Perhaps it's because he plays in Portland, or because his teammate is the flashier, more dynamic and charismatic Damian Lillard; whatever the case, Aldridge is constantly overlooked.
Despite averaging 23.2 points and 10.2 rebounds per game, Aldridge is sixth on the latest All-Star fan voting for frontcourt players. While it would be a very big and less than mobile frontcourt, if the best forwards and centers from the West were starting, Anthony Davis, Aldridge and Cousins would be on the floor first.
Jimmy Butler
While he's struggled of late, the Bulls' do-it-all shooting guard still has had an amazing first half of the regular season. NBA TV also thinks Butler should be an All-Star.
He's averaging 20.6 points per game, which is more than John Wall and the Toronto Raptors' Kyle Lowry and 1.2 points less than Dwyane Wade.
Butler is still guarding every team's best perimeter player, and he's grabbing six rebounds (1.6 boards more than Wade) and handing out 3.3 assists (0.7 less than Flash) with 1.8 steals per game (0.7 more than the Heat guard).
Few, if any, have been better all-around players than Butler. He deserves to start over Wade.
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