NBA All-Star Rosters 2017: Starters, Reserves, MVP Predictions and Reaction

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Nearly every All-Star-related headline after last week's announcement of the starters centered on Russell Westbrook's snub. As expected, the reserve rosters rectified that situation, with the Oklahoma City Thunder guard headlining the 14 remaining players who were named 2017 All-Stars on Thursday. 

TNT's Inside the NBA crew revealed the finalized rosters, which had been leaked through various reports earlier in the day. 

Westbrook, who is on pace to become the second player in NBA history to average a triple-double over a full season, lost a three-way tie for starter status due to fan voting. He was first among all Western Conference guards among media members and players but finished third behind Stephen Curry and James Harden in fan voting—the tiebreaker in the NBA's new formula.

"It is what it is," Westbrook told reporters last week of the snub. "It's the nature of the business, the game. I don't play for All-Star nods or All-Star bids. I play to win championships, and every night I compete at a high level. It will work out. Just continue to do what I'm doing and play the game the right way."

Westbrook is joined in the Western backcourt by Klay Thompson, who is one of an NBA-high four Golden State Warriors on the roster. Curry and former Westbrook teammate Kevin Durant were named starters, while Thompson and Draymond Green earned reserve status. The West will be coached by Golden State's Steve Kerr, who has led the Warriors to an NBA-best 39-7 record this season.

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Most of the rosters for both teams were generally self-explanatory. The Eastern reserves were an understandably guard-heavy affair, with John Wall, Kyle Lowry and Isaiah Thomas all putting up numbers that would be starter-worthy in other seasons. 

ESPN Stats & Info highlighted Wall's statistical excellence:

Gordon Hayward of the Utah Jazz and DeAndre Jordan of the Los Angeles Clippers are among the four first-time All-Stars making the trip to New Orleans. Long ranking among the game's most underrated stars, Hayward is averaging a career-high 21.8 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. He has been the offensive anchor to Rudy Gobert's defensive anchor in Utah's 29-18 start.

Teammate Trey Lyles congratulated Hayward:

Jordan, named a first-team All-NBA center last season, will be the only Clippers representative. He is averaging 12.5 points and 14.0 rebounds but was perhaps the most controversial selection in the West. Dan Feldman of NBC Sports disagreed with his selection:

Not among the first-time selections is Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid, whose infectious personality and on-court brilliance have brought life to the formerly moribund franchise. Embiid narrowly missed out on being named an All-Star starter after a major social media push and was always unlikely to be selected by coaches due to his playing-time restraints.

The 7-footer has been limited to 30 games this season as the Sixers slowly work him back from missing two seasons due to foot injuries. He is nonetheless one of the NBA's most productive players on a per-minute basis, averaging 19.8 points, 7.9 rebounds and 2.5 blocks in just 25.3 minutes per game. His rim-defense numbers are more than 3 percent better than any other player, per NBA.com.

Jake Pavorsky of Liberty Ballers, who understandably has a slightly biased outlook, wanted Embiid in the game:

Embiid once again used his media savvy to make a comment on his snub:

The coaches instead chose Kevin Love, Paul Millsap and Paul George as the remaining frontcourt players for the East. Love is making his first appearance in a Cleveland Cavaliers uniform after earning three nods with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Millsap has made the roster each of the last four seasons. 

Kemba Walker rounds out the first-timers among the reserves. Building on a stellar 2015-16 season, the Charlotte Hornets guard is averaging a career-high 23.0 points as well as 5.5 assists per game while shooting 41.1 percent from distance. He is perhaps the only Hornets player who is building on his successful campaign last year, as Charlotte sits at a disappointing 23-23. 

Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks was previously named to his first All-Star Game when the starters were announced. 

This will mark the first All-Star Game since 2009 to not feature New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony. The subject of trade speculation in recent weeks, Anthony had been an All-Star despite the Knicks' struggles in his first five full seasons with the club. 

He'll join friend Dwyane Wade among the unhappy stars to sit out the All-Star contest. Wade, who signed with the Chicago Bulls this offseason, was named an All-Star each of the previous 12 years.

Perhaps the biggest snub is Hayward's teammate Gobert, a Defensive Player of the Year candidate. 

A full-time starter for just the second season, Gobert is blasting career highs across the board. He's averaging 12.8 points, 12.6 rebounds and 2.5 blocks while emerging as arguably the NBA's premier rim protector. Opponents are shooting 43.6 percent on 10.8 shots per game with Gobert defending the rim, which ranks fifth among high-usage players. 

All-Star Game MVP Prediction

Russell Westbrook is averaging 30.7 points, 10.7 rebounds and 10.4 assists. He is roughly on pace to tie Oscar Robertson's single-season record for triple doubles (41), which was set back when games were played at a breakneck pace and defense was a fraction as complicated to exploit. 

Westbrook leads the NBA in scoring, and he is ranked second in assists and 11th in rebounding. He has propped up a Thunder team that lost Durant and Serge Ibaka in the offseason and has them in sixth place in the Western Conference, a mortal lock for the postseason. 

Westbrook is a fiery competitor who takes every slight to heart. He is, somehow, not starting the All-Star Game.

Oh, and Westbrook has also won the All-Star MVP two years running. Yeah, you're not about to cash me anywhere—inside or out—picking anyone else.