Friday, January 11, 2008

How Roy Can Make the All-Star Team

There has been a ton of chatter about the All-Star picks for each conference as of late, and rightfully so, because things are shaping up to be a bloodbath in the West. We've got a classic case of too many All-Stars and not enough spot.

And because Blazermania is spreading and Brandon Roy is my favorite player on earth (see below), my primary concern is seeing the Perimeter Duncan get into the game.

This is not going to be an easy feat, given the loaded West and the plethora of guards that can make claims in the West. However, there is a series of events that can land Roy in the game:

1. T-Mac Must Lose His Spot. The All-Star voting always sucks because undeserving players get in the game based on reputation alone. T-Mac has been sitting out with his annual injury and wasn't even playing all that well before he got hurt. He has to give way. Luckily, Allen Iverson has closed the cap to 80,000 votes with one round to go. AI might not catch him, but he's got a shot. And since Iverson is a more deserving All-Star, this would help the process. (Note: Nash is another 20,000 votes back and could also make a late charge.)

2. The Western Conference coaches must recognize that guards have been dominating this year. This means that in addition to choosing the two required guards as subs, they must also use both wild card spots on perimeter players. There is going to be a fifth forward (probably Shawn Marion) or a third center (Marcus Camby or Chris Kaman) deserving of a spot, but not over the top six guards in the West. Guards rule right now and the coaches must realize that fact.

3. The Spurs guards must split the vote. There is plenty of debate over whether Manu Ginobili or Tony Parker is the second most valuable or second best player on the Spurs. Both make compelling cases, so the best hope for Roy is that the coaches can't make up their minds and wind up splitting their Spurs vote right down the middle.

If those three things happen, it would open up the door to six total guard spots with no McGrady, Manu, or Parker. And since Roy seems to have a clear leg up over Deron Williams, the list would look like this:

1. Kobe Bryant (starter)
2. Allen Iverson (starter)
3. Chris Paul
4. Steve Nash
5. Baron Davis
6. Brandon Roy

It's as simple as that.

10 comments:

Troy said...

Roy is my boy, so I'm going to vote for AI and Nash right now. Weird.

Anonymous said...

Good luck trying to beat out those Chinese voters...

Anonymous said...

I always get so frustrated with All-Star voting. McGrady has already missed 12 games this year. McGrady, along with his overrated cousin Vince Carter, might be voted in but don't deserve it at all.

Brandon said...

Wow, at this point you'd rather take Roy over Williams, huh? Roy is a great player, but Deron is as efficient a floor general as there is today.

Anonymous said...

I love mormons like Brandon who posted above me that are huge Jazz fans and think that Williams is deserving of an all star bid. Roy has been killing it this season despite wear and tear, just tonight he nailed a near buzzer beater in the first OT from two steps behind the 3 point arc. The league really needs to get rid of fan voting for the all star game because 1.2 billion Chinese people will vote for McGrady or whoever is playing along side Yao next year after he is traded.

Brandon said...

Yeah, let's make this a religious issue, Anon. Good call. Deron's not Mormon... why bring it up? There are plenty of Jazz fans who aren't either, so leave it alone.

Here are some of Deron's stats:

20 ppg
9 apg
FG: 51%
3pt: 41%

Yeah, those numbers aren't even close to All-Star caliber.

You've been brainwashed by Hollinger.

Anonymous said...

Number one is so on the money. I used to hate how Grant Hill would make the team every year, even though he would suit up for the first five games of the season and then take to the sidelines. Drove me nuts.

Anonymous said...

to throw my hat into the debate, Deron is very deserving of an All-star, and if he doesn't get one it will be an atrocity. But, who do you leave out? The point guard situation in the West is crazy.. Roy slides 1/2, so figuring him as a 1, who do you leave off? Roy, Nash, Paul, Williams?

Brandon said...

That's the problem, Nick. The West is positively loaded with great guards. Even as a Jazz fan, I can't quite bump Paul or Nash, but I'd have to take Deron over Roy, if just for Williams' performance in the playoffs last year (for the tiebreaker).

Anonymous said...

T-mac is my fav player and i wana see him in allstar game but he already gave it up to ai.
so stop disrespecting him. He knows people deserve it more then him.