NBA All-Star Game: Change Is Needed

The NBA All-Star game is quickly approaching, and the contest’s starters have been announced. Here’s a look at who’s starting for each conference:

East Starters

G: Kyrie Irving

G: Dwayne Wade

F: Paul George

F Carmelo Anthony

F: LeBron James

West Starters

G: Stephen Curry

G: Kobe Bryant

F: Kevin Durant

F: Kevin Love

F: Blake Griffin

There are a few quick things that needed to be noted. The NBA’s decision to stop requiring one center be in each team's starting lineup was a good move. There simply aren’t enough dominant centers in the league right now to have two starting in the All-Star Game–especially not with so many talented forwards playing so well. That, however, is the only bright spot with this All-Star selection format. The fans should not be the ones selecting the starters.

The first problem with the format? Just look at the starting lineups for each conference. Kobe Bryant is one of the best shooting guards ever, and a top-10 player of all time, but he has no business starting this All-Star game. In the games he’s played this season, he has averaged 13.8 ppg, 6.3 apg and 4.3 rpg on 42% field goal shooting, while turning the ball over 5.7 times per contest. He’s also only played in six games this entire season. Guards out West like James Harden, Damian Lillard, Monta Ellis and Klay Thompson are all more deserving.

None of those guys are dominating the way Bryant usually does when he’s healthy, but they’ve all definitely been more deserving than Bryant this season. The rest of the starters in the West all deserve to be there—LaMarcus Aldridge should be starting over Blake Griffin—but the rest of the roster is solid.

The Eastern Conference is a bit different; the fans did well with the forward positions, but not as well with the guards. Kyrie Irving should not be a starter. He’s putting up 22 ppg, 6.5 apg and 3.0 rpg, but his team is 16-29, and for a guy who was supposed to be the eighth best player in the league, he has not lived up to his expectations. A more deserving PG would be John Wall; not only does Wall have his team headed to the playoffs, but he’s putting up slightly better numbers than Irving with 20.0 ppg, 8.5 apg and 4.3 rpg. Wall is beginning to show why the Wizards took him first overall in 2010.

Dwayne Wade also should not be the starting 2-guard. Wade has only played in 31 of the 44 games for the Heat this year, and while his numbers are solid and his field goal percentage is stellar, there are more deserving players in the East. DeMar DeRozan may be the most impressive shooting guard in the conference, and although he isn’t averaging a lot more points than Wade is, he’s been much more important to his team’s success this year. Kemba Walker is another guard who could potentially be a starter. It might sound like a stretch, but he’s been a vital piece for the Bobcats, who are currently holding on to the eighth seed.

While there are only a few players that shouldn’t be in the lineup, that does not diminish the issue with having the fans vote. The fact is, the fans should have no say in how the all-star game roster plays out.

The NBA is essentially letting fans determine the course of these players’ careers, and they’ll always focus too much on the flash and popularity. Blake Griffin has thrown down some of the most spectacular dunks in recent memory, but he certainly isn’t a better player than LaMarcus Aldridge or even David Lee. Everyone loves Kobe Bryant—even those who don’t follow the NBA—so it is no surprise that he is in the starting lineup, even though he noted that he probably doesn't deserve to be in it this season.

The fans provide the NBA with great atmosphere and the avid support that the players love, but that doesn’t mean that they should decide who plays in the All-Star Game—especially when they cannot make well-informed decisions.

The NBA coaches should be the ones voting for the starters. They see the game from a more objective angle than the fans, so it’s good that they can at least vote for the reserves under the existing format. NBA coaches know the most about the players that they coach and compete against on a nightly basis.

Even if the coaches didn’t do the voting, having the media do it would still be a better option than leaving it to the fans. The media outlets covering the NBA are also supposed to use objectivity when reporting on the game, and their access would lead to a better starting lineup.

The fans are too subjective, and as important as they are to the NBA, they should not be determining who starts in the NBA All-Star game.

 

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