Eastern Conference All-Star Reserves Revealed
While the actual teams in the All-Star game won't be grouped by conference as they have been in years past, the player pool to be drafted still consists of an equal number of players from each conference that will then be picked one by one by team captains Steph Curry and LeBron James. With the starters already announced previously (you can take a look at my breakdown here: https://steemit.com/nba/@brandonp/2018-nba-all-star-starting-lineups-announced), let's take a look at the reserves for the Eastern Conference.
The One's We Knew Would Make It
Bradley Beal - G - Washington Wizards
Victor Oladipo - G - Indiana Pacers
Kristaps Porzingis - F - New York Knicks
You could probably make an argument that a couple more guys should be on this list as the East was relatively low on All-Star talent, but these three were a true cut above the rest in terms of production. Beal and Oladipo are leading teams with their eyes set on the playoffs, while the Knicks have fallen out of the playoff standings due in large part to less than stellar play from Porzingis. All three certainly deserved a spot on the All-Star team and all three had a legitimate shot at a starting spot as well. I don't think anyone has any real qualms with any of these three guys making the All-Star team in a weaker Eastern Conference.
The One's We Thought Would Make It
Kyle Lowry - G - Toronto Raptors
John Wall - G - Washington Wizards
We'll start with Kyle Lowry whose Raptors' backcourt mate, DeMar DeRozan, cracked the starting lineup is having a solid year so far for an overachieving Toronto Raptors squad. The team is currently second in the East and has hovered within a couple games of the Celtics all year. Lowry has had a down year scoring the ball, but with DeRozan's emergence, the Raptors haven't needed Lowry to look for his own shot all the time. This new-look squad has Lowry keeping his teammates involved more and has Lowry playing more off the ball than in previous years. He's still one of the best players on the second best team in the East and for that he deserves a spot.
John Wall of the Wizards has also had a similar drop in productivity as Lowry and while that's due in large part to the solid play of Bradley Beal, Wall still deserves a spot on the All-Star team as he has lowered his turnover rate. Wall might be the biggest winner of a talent drop in the East as it's hard to say if he would have earned the spot if he played in the West. Either way, I think there is an argument to be made against Wall, but I don't think it's egregious that he made the squad.
The Bubble Guys
Al Horford - F - Boston Celtics
Kevin Love - F - Cleveland Cavaliers
I think that Shaq hit the nail on the head when he laughed at the fact that Al Horford made the All-Star game while averaging 13.3 PPG and 7.8 RPG. While I see the argument that Horford is integral to the Eastern Conference leading Boston Celtics defensive scheme, the All-Star game has literally never been about defense and Horford's numbers don't stack up with guys that didn't make the team (more on that below). I knew Horford had a chance because the East is so thin in the frontcourt and the fact that the Celtics run a good amount of offense through Horford, but it still seems like other guys had better resumes.
Kevin Love is another guy that got lucky with a weak Eastern Conference frontcourt selection. While Love looked like vintage Love early on in the season, his numbers have regressed and he is now being blamed for much of the Cavaliers' woes. He's a minus defender and hasn't been nearly the force on offense that he showed early in the season. Love hasn't done anything particularly well this year and for that I don't believe he deserved an All-Star nod.
The Snubs
Andre Drummond - F - Detroit Pistons
Guess I gotta start doing back flips after every point I score to get attention around here!
- Andre Drummond (@AndreDrummond) January 24, 2018
Lmao on to the next
The tweet pretty much says it all. Drummond is currently averaging 13.4 PPG and a league leading 15.0 RPG. Compare that to Al Horford's numbers and there's really no argument as to why Drummond didn't make this year's squad. Drummond might be the biggest snub from either conference and I can see why he would be upset with his lack of All-Star status. The only real argument is that his team isn't doing as well, but look at the guys around him compared to the likes of Horford or Love. Put either of those guys on this Pistons team and they aren't going anywhere.
Ben Simmons - G - Philadelphia 76ers
Simmons is averaging a near triple double (16.3 PPG, 7.2 APG, 7.9 RPG) right now and the biggest reason he didn't make the team is the glut of talented guards in the East. If I had my way, I would re-categorize Simmons as a frontcourt player and have him in over Kevin Love, but such is life. Simmons will have his fair share of All-Star appearances in his future. The fact that Simmons is a "rookie" probably hurt his case as well as the fact that Philadelphia is currently only one game above .500. Either way, I think Simmons would be far more entertaining to watch than Kevin Love or Al Horford.
And there you have it! Look out for my Western Conference reserves breakdown soon! If you liked this post, consider signing up for my weekly NBA newsletter by entering your email here: mailchi.mp/dfef9429318a/swish-weekly-signup. Please also consider following 