All-Stars?

During the Milwaukee broadcast Mike Rice made an open plea to all League Pass viewers to write in a vote for Brandon Roy for the All-Star game.  This brings up an annual subject that is both painful and I think silly as well.  Let's cut to the chase and say it boils down to this:

--I love Roy and Aldridge, I am prepared to worship the ground they walk on, and I'm hard-pressed to think of two young players I'd rather have on this team.

--Neither one of them makes the All-Star team this year.  And that's not a snub, it's just the numbers game.

I consider the following players near mortal locks to make the Western squad:

Yao Ming
Tim Duncan
Amare Stoudemire
Dirk Nowitzki
Kobe Bryant
Allen Iverson
Tracy McGrady
Tony Parker
Steve Nash
Carlos Boozer

Just a shade under those are:

Josh Howard
Deron Williams

That's 12 players right there that would shock me if they didn't make the squad.  But wait, there's more!  Consider the following names:

Carmelo Anthony
Baron Davis
Manu Ginobili
Chris Paul

If any of the Top 12 don't make it all of those would be likely candidates.

The way Lamarcus or Brandon would get in would be to corral the "young, promising player with great stats" vote.  But if that's what you're hoping for consider:

Al Jefferson
Kevin Martin
Kevin Durant (for publicity's sake if nothing else)

Each has at least as good of a chance as our guys, if not better.

In any case, the odds are long.  You figure in the team's record, the fact that our two stars are only in their second year, and that both of their positions are logjammed and the odds get even longer.

So here's my advice:

1.  Don't be surprised when neither makes it.
2.  Don't think it matters much.
3.  Understand that neither one is the type to stand out in such a contest anyway, especially at this point.
4.  Also understand in another few years we could have three guys going in the same year.

I was always shocked when people got upset about Zach not going.  It would not have turned him into a better player.  We're seeing now in New York what kind of player he really is when the ball doesn't go to him every possession.  It looks like the voters were pretty much on.  I figure it's one of two ways.  Either the voters have it right and our guys don't belong there yet or the voters are complete fools who are missing what's right under their noses.  But if they're complete fools why do you want the respect shown by their vote anyway?  Who cares what you look like to a fool?

In any case, forewarned is forearmed.  Rice's plea doesn't matter anyway since there's no way either guy is voted to the starting lineup by the fans.  If the coach vote goes their way it will be a great and unexpected sign of respect.  But if it doesn't go their way yet that's not a sign of disrespect.  It just means there are others in line first and our guys have more to prove.  Looking at the field in the West you can't make the case that they deserve to go to the exclusion of all others.  That's pretty much what it's going to take to get a Blazer in there.

Oh, and if you just can't stand it, know that one of our guys is for sure going next year.

--Dave (blazersub@yahoo.com)