<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">FEW CHALLENGES in sports are as mentally stimulating as selecting NBA All-Star teams. This season might be the toughest of all. You have all the classic debates: Fan favorites vs. guys with better numbers. Injured stars vs. lesser, more-productive players. Standouts from bad teams vs. second- or third-best guys from good teams. Stars who won't be able to play vs. guys who wouldn't even be considered if everyone were healthy. Here are my 12-man rosters: Eastern starters Gilbert Arenas, Wizards. Congratulations to the fans for vaulting the ex-Warrior past Vince Carter in the final days of the balloting. This honor is well-deserved. Dwyane Wade, Heat. The East has two no-brainers. This is one. LeBron James, Cavaliers. And this is the other. Chris Bosh, Raptors. His knee injury opened the door for Jermaine O'Neal or Dwight Howard to sneak in, but he's back now and playing at a very high level again. Shaquille O'Neal, Heat. The modern-day Wilt Chamberlain has a spot in my All-Star Game until he retires. Eastern reserves Jason Kidd, Nets. Nobody puts the fun in an All-Star Game quite like the former Cal star. Chauncey Billups, Pistons. You could argue the Pistons deserve two spots, and Rip Hamilton, one of the top scorers in the East, is just as worthy as Billups. All true, but I'm making Hamilton my first alternate among little guys. Paul Pierce, Celtics. I doubt Pierce (foot injury) will be ready to go Feb.18 in Las Vegas. But I'd still want to parade him out there with the Best of the Best, then hand Hamilton his All-Star uniform. Michael Redd, Bucks. The sweet-shooting, currently injured Buck falls into the same category as Pierce. Atlanta's Joe Johnson is second in line if Pierce and Redd both remain out of action. Vince Carter, Nets. It seems a bit unfair that the Nets get two All-Stars and the Bulls get none. Alas, this isn't baseball. Jermaine O'Neal, Pacers. If you want to start him ahead of Bosh, I won't argue. Dwight Howard, Magic. It was hard to distinguish between Howard and Emeka Okafur a year ago. Not anymore. Western starters Steve Nash, Suns. Even with Allen Iverson and Tracy McGrady having moved west, choosing the dominant conference's starting guards remains easy. Kobe Bryant, Lakers. His team's improvement makes Bryant a legitimate MVP candidate this season. Carmelo Anthony, Nuggets. Some will say Kevin Garnett gets the nod because of Anthony's suspension. Not me. Dirk Nowitzki, Mavericks. Do the Mavericks get a second All-Star? I say no. Yao Ming, Rockets. Here's Garnett's starting spot, with the West's top center probably out through the All-Star break with a broken leg. Western reserves Baron Davis, Warriors. You could go at least eight directions — Tony Parker, Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Manu Ginobili, Elton Brand, Zach Randolph, Amare Stoudemire, Carlos Boozer — with the 12th spot in the West. I'm going with the most productive of the point guards not named Nash. Tracy McGrady, Rockets. Looking at the West bench, I feel compelled to ask: Why can't Team USA win gold medals anymore? Allen Iverson, Nuggets. East or West, he's still an All-Star. Ray Allen, SuperSonics. Yes, I'd put him on ahead of Davis if that were the decision. Kevin Garnett, Timberwolves. If he got traded to the Bulls, the All-Star Game would be more competitive. Shawn Marion, Suns. Five teams get two invitations. The Suns are the most deserving of the five. Tim Duncan, Spurs. The impressive state of Western big men: No room for Stoudemire (except as Yao's injury replacement), Brand and Boozer. </div> Source
East starters : g : arenas g : wade f : james f : o' neal C : howard reserves : kidd, bosh, billups, j johnson, carter, hamilton west : g : nash g : mcgrady f : garnett f : nowitzki f : marian reserves : b davis, bryant, iverson , duncan, boozer, brand, stoudamire no shaq, paul, yao, anthony, pierce, redd.... you don't play whether you are a moron chicken **** like anthony or injured, you dont get rewarded with being an all star. 3 suns, why not?.... in 1990 the lakers undeservedly put magic, worthy, ? scott i think and unbelievably ac green....and elft mullin rich and timmy off... in fact for that move i leave bryant off and add ray allen
Just from a PG perspective I put BDavis on there, but from a guard perspective I would rather put Allen or Bryant... If Yao is available to play I say he starts at Center because he was having a phenominal year. At least he played a good part of it. Shaq did not even suit up but for maybe 3 games. Sorry big fella, you would have made it had you not been injured, but you gotta be able to play. I am sure he cares less because he is a perennial All Star, but Davis is probably pretty hungry to play and bring some limelight to GS!
I think the all-star game is so meaningless, I'd hate to see Baron Davis get hurt in one of those games. I say forget it, real fans know who the impact players in this league are. Even guys like Mike Bibby or Ben Gordon/Kirk Hinrich backcourt. I think real fans know who the real difference makers are. They don't need lay-fans to come in and spoil things and vote Yao/T-mac/Shaq as starters.
