Who's your All-Stars bet?

This year’s NBA All-star game-voting process took on a new turn by including the players to voice out their opinions on who, in their most humble opinion, should make the Eastern and Western Conference rosters. The players wanted their vote to count, and count it did. Just like any new implementation to a system, it wasn’t perfect but done all for the greater good of the sport. Many new names made it to the ballot and some say they don’t deserve to be in the same ranks as others. Meanwhile, many also believe that this is a step in the right direction.

Now let’s get one thing straight: the All-Star Games are designed to promote and feature the league’s best of the best players. Showcasing household names like LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers), Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks), Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors) and James Harden (Houston Rockets) just to name a few, it is no surprise that these guys are at the front line of the Eastern and Western Conferences. Needless to say these guys are at the top of their game and there is little or no reason to question their inclusion on the roster. With the fans comprising of 50% of the votes, 324 participating NBA players accounting for 25% and with the media personalities’ 25%, the people have spoken and have gotten the lineup that they want to see at the games. These big names are sure to put on another spectacular show of athleticism. 

Now let’s take the time to examine some of the names that didn’t make the cut. Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers Front Court Player) ranked number five in the Media Voters Tally, third in the Fans Voters Tally and Eighth in the Players Voters Tally but failed to make the Eastern Conference Roster. Carmelo Anthony (New York Knicks Front Court Player) who ranked sixth in both the Players Voters Tally and the Fans Voters Tally but failed to impress the Media Voters, did not make it to the list either. Karl-Anthony Towns (Minnesota Timberwolves Front Court Player) who ranked tenth at the Players Voters Tally, seventh at the Media Voters Tally and seventh at the Fans Voters Tally did not make it to the Western Conference All-Star roster.

Zaza Pachulia (Milwaukee Bucks Front Court Player) who ranked second in the Fan Voters Tally, twelfth with the Players Voters Tally also was not in favor of the Media Voters. These are the guys that we would have loved to see, but for reasons unknown to us mere mortals, speculate all we want, we shall never know.  What we do know is that the selection process is as competitive as it can get. So we’ll take what we can from this.  

The current list of players available now is formidable on paper and it is even more impressive viewed live and on High Definition. These guys are all hype but can back it up with their reputation on the court. With New Orleans hosting the games, we can expect a high scoring affair. These big name ballers are all capable of winning the Most Valuable Player Award. And though we’ve placed our bets on our favorite players, we’ll leave it up to the experts to decide. We’re just excited to see those jaw-dropping, glass breaking dunks from the monsters and for the shooters to make it rain all day long. For sure, it’s going to be a good day.