NBA All-Star Voting

Yesterday was the last day to vote for the NBA All Stars.

Voting consist of two guards, two forwards, and one center.

My picks for the Western Conference are Chris Paul, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Kevin Love, and Andrew Bynum.

Picking the guards for the West is a no brainer.  Kobe’s averaging over 30 points a game.  Brian Westbrook gets an honorable mention, but Paul’s all around numbers gives him the edge.

Of course Durant is on the ballot and probably keeps his team mate Westbrook’s stats down just a bit.  The other forward position is a toss up with  Love getting the nod with slightly better numbers than Blake Griffin with the reasoning basically being that Griffin plays with Paul.  It could be said that Griffin would put up more if he didn’t have Paul sharing the stats, but without his point guard who knows if he’d continue the same production.

There’s not much going on with the center position in either league and Bynum is the West’s clear cut favorite.

My picks for the Eastern Conference are Derrick Rose, Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Chris Bosh, and Dwight Howard.

Picking the guards for the East is easier than expected.  With Wade being injured part of the year it gave way to a possibility of his spot being taken, but the only people close to Wade and Rose are Deron Williams and John Wall.


When you consider that Williams and Wall play with basically no other superstars and still have worse numbers than Wade then you can’t give them the starting nod.

Of course James is a starter and considering his production being shared with Wade and Bosh makes each of their production that much more impressive.  Staying with the theme, Bosh put up better numbers than Carmello Anthony, Amar’e Stodimire, and every other forward in the East even while playing with Wade and James.

Again, the weakest position in the league is center and Dwight Howard clearly is the only worthy candidate for the Eastern Conference.

Playing with a superstar helps better your game, but when you are a superstar yourself it cuts into your own numbers.  It’s the sacrifice you take to win championships compared to winning statistical categories. 

When you can play with other superstars and still put up the best numbers in the league that’s what makes you an All-Star.

Brian Westbrook and Blake Griffin get the snubs on my list of starters because their co-superstar produces just enough to keep them from having the top numbers at their respective position.

In Griffin’s honor, here’s his most recent spectacular dunk where he facializes Westbrook’s team mate Kendrick Perkins.