The Sports Brief with Besse and Keefe: All-Stars

Showing posts with label All-Stars. Show all posts

Thursday, January 22, 2015

Thursday, January 30, 2014

Thursday, January 23, 2014

Friday, February 4, 2011

NBA All-Star Reserves Revealed

A record tying 4 Celtics were named as reserves for the Eastern Conference All-Star team tonight. The C's and Miami Heat combine for 7 of the 12 roster spots in the East. Here are the squads starting with the newly announced subs...

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

Rajon Rondo, Celtics
Ray Allen, Celtics
Paul Pierce, Celtics
Kevin Garnett, Celtics
Al Horford, Hawks
Joe Johnson, Hawks
Chris Bosh, Heat

Starters: Derrick Rose, Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Amar'e Stoudemire, Dwight Howard

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

Tim Duncan, Spurs
Manu Ginobili, Spurs
Russell Westbrook, Thunder
Pau Gasol, Lakers
Blake Griffin, Clippers
Deron Williams, Jazz
Dirk Nowitzki, Mavericks

Starters: Chris Paul, Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Durant, Yao Ming*

These were the All-Stars I picked last week with two exceptions. I had Danny Granger over Joe Johnson in the East. Johnson is the smarter pick as he is on a far superior team, and that is clearly important in the East as all 12 All-Stars are on the Top 6 teams. Johnson has picked it up after a slow start while Granger's Pacers are struggling big time.

Meanwhile I also had Kevin Love as an All-Star for the West, and that can still hold true. David Stern has not selected his replacement for the injured Yao Ming yet. There is a deep pool of snubs in the West including Love, LaMarcus Aldridge, Zach Randolph, and Lamar Odom, just for big guys. Also All-Star worthy were/are Monta Ellis, Steve Nash, and Tony Parker.

I'll be rooting for Kevin Love who leads the NBA in rebounding with 15+ to go along with 21+ points a night.

-Keefe

Coming soon Besse and I will make our pick for the Super Bowl, game MVP, and plenty of other exciting props that will make you want to reactivate your online account.

Thursday, January 27, 2011

NBA All-Star Starters Announced

The starters for the upcoming NBA All-Star game were released tonight with no changes from the last voting update. Here they are...

Eastern Conference:

Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls
Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat
LeBron James, Miami Heat
Amar'e Stoudemire, New York Knicks
Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic

Western Conference:

Chris Paul, New Orleans Hornets
Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
Carmelo Anthony, Denver Nuggets
Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder
Yao Ming, Houston Rockets

Each player is making a return trip to the All-Star game, led by Kobe Bryant in his 13th. Kobe also received more than 2.3 million votes making him the most popular. Does that surprise anyone else? He may or may not have raped a chick a few years ago. He's won back-to-back titles, which I guess means there are a ton of front runners out there, because I don't think Jack is logging on to vote for his favorite Lakers.

I am not surprised in the sense that he doesn't deserve it. Of course he does, Kobe is one of the Top 10 greatest players of all-time and is still playing at a high level. But that many people voted for him? Come on America. On second thought, perhaps China can be blamed for this. As you see Yao Ming gets the starting nod after a solid 5 games played this season. Maybe it's Kobe's Worldwide popularity that pushed him to this level. Yes, I am going to go with this.

The All-Star reserves will be announced next Thursday night. Just scroll down to see my picks. I do have 4 Celtics making it as well as Kevin Love in the West.

-Keefe

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Keefe's '09-'10 NBA All-Stars

Last Thursday the starters for next month's NBA All-Star game in Dallas were announced. Thankfully T-Mac was not one of them, but I still did not agree with all 10, specifically Iverson. In the East you have; Dwight Howard (ok), Kevin Garnett (no way), LeBron James (for the next 10 years), Dwyane Wade (ditto, if healthy), and Allen Iverson (terrible).

Western starters: Amare Stoudemire (fine), Tim Duncan (of course), Carmelo Anthony (well deserved), Steve Nash (fair enough), Kobe Bryant (best player in the game).

Based off of that, here is who I believe should be the 7 man bench units, that will be announced on Thursday... only on TNT!

Eastern Conference Subs:

Gerald Wallace, Bobcats (18.5 points 11 rebounds)
Chris Bosh, Raptors (24.2 points 11.1 rebounds)
Joe Johnson, Hawks (21.1 points 4.8 rebounds, 4.9 assists)
Rajon Rondo, Celtics (14.2 points 9.6 assists, 2.5 steals)
David Lee, Knicks (19.2 points, 11.4 rebounds)
Paul Pierce, Celtics (18.9 points, 4.8 rebounds)
Antawn Jamison, Wizards (21.7 points, 8.6 rebounds)

Guys who should be in, in place of Kevin Garnett and Allen Iverson:

Josh Smith, Hawks (15.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, 3.68 stocks)
Brandon Jennings, Bucks (17.9 points, 6.2 assists)

Western Conference Subs:

Zach Randolph, Grizzlies (20.9 points, 11.5 rebounds)
Chris Paul, Hornets (20 points, 11.2 assists, 2.25 steals)
Deron Williams, Jazz (18.9 points, 9.6 assists)
Dirk Nowitzki, Mavericks (25.1 points, 7.9 rebounds)
Kevin Durant, Thunder (29.3 points, 7.3 rebounds)
Brandon Roy, Blazers (23.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, 5 assists)
Chris Kamen, Clippers (20.1 points, 9.1 rebounds)

All of the West starters deserve to be at least on the roster, therefore here are the toughest omissions:

Pau Gasol, Lakers (17.1 points, 10.9 points, 27 games)
Rudy Gay, Grizzlies (20.5 points, 6 rebounds)
Tyreke Evans, Kings (20.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, 4.9 assists)
Aaron Brooks, Rockets (18.7 points, 5 assists)

-Keefe

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Who Should Start the 2010 NBA All-Star Game

The starters for the 2010 NBA All-Star game will be announced tonight during the TNT double-header. If you've been paying attention at all to how the fans have been voting, you'll be thrilled to know that Allen Iverson (16 games, 14.8 points, 4.5 assists, 2.3 turnovers) and Tracy McGrady (6 games, 3.2 points, 0.8 rebounds, 1 assist) were at last check in the top 2 for guards in their respective conferences, thus would be starting in the All-Star game next month in Dallas.

I think by now, all level headed sports fans realize it is an absolute joke to allow the fans to have so much pull in an All-Star game. (And if you don't, look at those AI and T-Mac numbers again). Imagine if fans voted for MVP, All-NBA, All-Pro, Hall of Fame?!? But the purpose of this blog post is not to trash the thousands of idiot fans out there, instead I want a chance to say who should start the All-Star game this year.

Eastern Conference:

Guards:

Dwyane Wade, Heat (26.9 points, 4.8 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3+ stocks (if you read Bill Simmons Book of Basketball you'd know stocks are steals + blocks)).

Joe Johnson, Hawks (21.2 points, 4.9 rebounds, 4.9 assists)

Neither guy is a true point guard, but both deserve to be starters in the All-Star Game.

Toughest omission- Rajon Rondo, Celtics

Forwards:

LeBron James, Cavs (29.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, 7.8 assists)

Gerald Wallace, Bobcats (18.6 points, 11.3 rebounds, nearly 3 stocks)

Not only is Wallace putting up sick numbers, but his team is currently in 5th place in the East. Yes the Charlotte Bobcats are in 5th place in the Eastern Conference. Let that sit in.

Toughest omission = turn him into my starting Center

Center:

Chris Bosh, Raptors (24.2 points, 11.2 rebounds, leads league with 31 double-doubles)

I guess he's technically a power forward, but it's the All-Star game, another reason the ballots for the fans shouldn't exist.

Toughest omission- David Lee, Knicks, that's right and not Dwight Howard

East Starters- Wade, Johnson, James, Wallace, Bosh

Western Conference:

Guards:

Kobe Bryant, Lakers (28.3 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.5 assists)

Chris Paul, Hornets (19.6 points, 4.6 rebounds, 11.3 assists, 2.21 steals)

Toughest omission- Deron Williams, Jazz

Forwards:

Carmelo Anthony, Nuggets (29.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists)

Dirk Nowitzki, Mavericks (25.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, %FG-3-FT = 48-39-88)

Toughest omission- let's make him a Center like in the East

Center:

Zach Randolph, Grizzlies (20.8 points, 11.5 rebounds, 2 assists, 50% FG)

Toughest omission- Tim Duncan, Spurs

West Starters- Bryant, Paul, Anthony, Nowitzki, Randolph

-Keefe

Coming soon: "Keefe's 2010 NBA All-Star Rosters"

Friday, January 30, 2009

2009 NBA All-Stars: Closer Look

The reserves were announced last night for the 2009 NBA All-Star game which will be played Valentine's day weekend out in Phoenix. Let's take a look at the squads. Who has a beef? Who lucked out?

Eastern Conference:

Dwayne Wade, Heat
Allen Iverson, Pistons
LeBron James, Cavs
Kevin Garnett, Celtics
Dwight Howard, Magic

Reserves:

Paul Pierce, Celtics
Chris Bosh, Raptors
Joe Johnson, Hawks
Danny Granger, Pacers
Jameer Nelson, Magic
Rashard Lewis, Magic
Devin Harris, Nets

Western Conference:

Chris Paul, Hornets
Kobe Bryant, Lakers
Tim Duncan, Spurs
Amare Stoudemire, Suns
Yao Ming, Rockets

Reserves:

Dirk Nowitzki, Mavericks
Pau Gasol, Lakers
Brandon Roy, Blazers
Chauncey Billups, Nuggets
Tony Parker, Spurs
Shaquille O'Neal, Suns
David West, Hornets

Earlier in the week I successfully picked 12 out of the 14 reserves. The two I didn't? Rashard Lewis and David West. And I stick by that.

Lucky to be an All-Star:

David West: Yeah he's averaging 20 points per game, but his 7.1 rebounds ties him with Marc Gasol and Anderson Varejao for 31st in the NBA. He's a power forward. Nene, Dampier, Kendrick Perkins, Scola, and LeBron are some of the names pulling down more boards than West. Although some of the catergories are close, West has seen a decline in points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, and FG% from last year.

Allen Iverson: West is 31st in rebounding, AI is 31st in scoring. Do you know that Billups is averaging more points than the Answer this year? Chalk this one up to the fans who vote AI in, and kept more deserving guards from the East out.

Rashard Lewis: I just don't see it. 19.3 points and 6 rebounds is good, but do the Orlando Magic really need 3 All-Stars? Put him in the 3 point contest, that's fine, but he's not one of the best 12 players in the East this year.

Biggest beef:

Al Jefferson: His team is bad, but they're the hottest team in January. Big Al is a 20-10 guy and much more deserving than say David West. 8th in the league in scoring, 7th in rebounding, but playing on the T-Wolves kept him out. Should have been in.

Vince Carter: Vince vs. Rashard Lewis? Vince scores more, has more assists, and is only 0.9 rebounds worse than Lewis. Carter is 11th in the league in scoring, and makes up the highest scoring backcourt in the NBA for a surprising Nets team. Like him or not he should be in Phoenix.

Other cases can be made for Carmelo Anthony (despite missing time with injury Melo is putting up more points and rebounds per game than David West, and is on a team with a better record. Figure that one out.) Mo Williams, Ray Allen, and Rajon Rondo. However Celtics fans should not freak out about Allen or Rondo. They just weren't good enough in the first half, plain and simple.

-Keefe

Scroll down to see Besse's account of the Price is Right from today as well as why he thinks B.J. Penn can beat Georges St. Pierre... I have no idea who will win that one.

Friday, January 23, 2009

Monday, July 7, 2008

Name that MLB All-Star

-Keefe

The All-Stars have been named for next week’s game from Yankee Stadium. The Sox and Cubs lead all teams with 7 selections. The 1st place Tampa Bay Rays will bring 2 players to the mid-summer classic in Scott Kazmir and Dioner Navarro. Every year it’s the same thing. Guys make it when they shouldn’t, and guys don’t when they should. This year is no different.

Let’s play a little game called “Name that MLB All-Star.” As seen sometimes on Baseball Tonight or in March when deciding on those last bubble teams I will simply list stats for certain players at a specific position without the benefit of their names, and you decide who deserves to be the All-Star. In some cases you will be able to choose more than 1 nameless player. Scroll down to see who belongs to each stat line, with the actual All-Stars in BOLD.

Before we begin I want to point out I understand that the fans vote in the starters, and every team in the league must be represented. The bench players are elected by fellow players and the managers (Terry Francona and Clint Hurdle). With that said, let’s see who really should be All-Stars.

We’ll start out simple. Just 2 options here. 1 is an All-Star and 1 is not. The position is Catcher in the American League. You decide.

Which Catcher deserves to be an All- Star?

Player A: .296, 7 HR, 33 RBI, 33 Runs

Player B: .218, 7 HR, 27 RBI, 18 Runs

I know, it’s not close. Well player B was voted in by the players. His name: Jason Varitek. The Red Sox captain is only owned in 42.6% of ESPN Fantasy Leagues! Every team in fantasy needs a catcher right? That is unbelievable. In fact recently released Indians reliever Joe Borowski (42.5%) is owned in just as many leagues.

A. A.J. Pierzynski, CHW
B. Jason Varitek, BOS

Staying in the American League let’s take a look at 3rd basemen. Choose (2) out of (5).

Player A: .281, 17 HR, 54 RBI

Player B: .261, 15 HR, 47 RBI

Player C: .286, 8 HR, 44 RBI

Player D: .297, 13 HR, 54 RBI

Player E: .281, 16 HR, 52 RBI

Looking at the numbers this one might be tough. Some similar stat lines here. No way player B makes it over D or E right? Wrong.

A: Aubrey Huff*, BAL
B: Joe Crede, CHW
C: Carlos Guillen, DET
D: Mike Lowell, BOS
E: Evan Longoria, TAM

*3B eligible in fantasy

What about OF in the AL? Here are the numbers of 7 players, choose only 2.

Player A: .272, 13 HR, 64 RBI

Player B: .278, 16 HR, 53 RBI

Player C: .307, 12 HR, 50 RBI

Player D: .271, 11 HR, 55 RBI

Player E: .302, 3 HR, 21 RBI, 34 SB

Player F: .308, 19 HR, 52 RBI

Player G: .288, 8 HR, 47 RBI, 22 SB

Chalk this one up to the fans. Only 2 players on this list were selected, and they both are starters.

A: Jose Guillen, KC
B: Manny Ramirez, BOS
C: Magglio Ordonez, DET
D: David Murphy, TEX
E: Ichiro, SEA
F: Jermaine Dye, CHW
G: Carl Crawford, TAM

Surprised? It’s not the worst players fans have voted in, not even close, but everyone on this list not going to NY next week certainly has a beef.

The Sports Brief is not AL biased. In the National League nearly the same scenario played out. 2 popular outfielders were named starters while other more deserving players got denied.

Choose (2) of the (6) NL outfielders.

Player A: .283, 15 HR, 40 RBI

Player B: .279, 21 HR, 53 RBI

Player C: .292, 19 HR, 67 RBI

Player D: .287, 7 HR, 35 RBI

Player E: .321, 12 HR, 53 RBI

Player F: .296, 14 HR, 55 RBI, 13 SB

You think it’s a popularity contest? You’re right.

A: Alfonso Soriano, CHC
B: Pat Burrell, PHI
C: Carlos Lee, HOU
D: Kosuke Fukudome, CHC
E: Xavier Nady, PIT
F: Corey Hart, MIL

And lastly how about the closers in the NL? Take just 1 of these 4.

Player A: 0-1, 4.37 ERA, 24 saves

Player B: 4-1, 2.43 ERA, 18 saves

Player C: 4-2, 2.44 ERA, 17 saves

Player D: 2-3, 2.57 ERA, 18 saves

This one I don’t understand. Saves is clearly an overrated stat, but I guess not here.

A: Brian Wilson, SF
B: Francisco Cordero, CIN
C: Jon Rauch, WSH
D: Brandon Lyon, ARI

This one would have made a lot more since to me if Wilson was the only selection from the Giants. But with Tim Lincecum on the squad, why take a closer with an ERA pushing 4.50? I don’t get it.

There will always be problems picking All-Star teams in every sport. But that’s what makes it a fun debate. Not even mentioned above is the fact that some positions are just so loaded, that some players get left off with little to argue. Ryan Howard for example is leading the NL in RBI with 76 and 2nd in HR (1 shy of teammate Chase Utley with 23), but his .223 average hurts him compared to the likes of Lance Berkman, Albert Pujols, and Adrian Gonzalez (only SD selection, and having a monster season). Mark Teixiera (.276-16-66) and Derrek Lee (.306-15-53) are others having great years, but nothing like the guys in front of them.

Bottom line is when voting is involved not everyone will be happy. Isn’t that right Al Gore fans?

-Keefe

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

These Guys Were NBA All-Stars?

-Keefe

This is a continuation from last week’s article where I listed the best players currently in the NBA who have never made an All- Star team. The opposite of that, you guessed it, the worst players to be named All- Stars. This was much trickier. I limited it to guys I would me more familiar with, so you’ll only see All-Stars from the 1990 season until now. I am also not arguing the fact that they had a great season (or half season) the year or years they were selected, rather its players you would not associate with being an All- Star. I don’t want to list players who had a number of great seasons, but then faded in their careers, so people more forgot they were even good (Stephon Marbury, Derrick Coleman, Mookie Blaylock, Terry Porter, Sam Cassell, Ben Wallace, Otis Thorpe, Kenny Anderson, Hershey Hawkins, and Rickey Pierce.). If injury was the main reason they didn’t make more All- Star teams (Kenyon Martin, Tom Gugliotta, Shareef Abur-Rahim, and Antonio McDyess) you won’t see them on this list either.

I didn’t want to entitle this “Worst Players to be Named All-Stars,” because the reality is these guys were/are good players, but great? Instead the purpose is to get a chuckle looking at some of the names of guys who, yes, were NBA All- Stars. Here is the “Top” 25.

25. Memhet Okur

All- Star season (2007): 17.6 pts., 7.2 rebs.

Career Averages: 13.4 pts., 7.1 rebs., 1.7 asts.

I’m a fan of Okur, and his years in Detroit where he didn’t play much don’t help his career numbers. The Jazz are known for their 2 All-Stars, not 3, or 4…

24. Andrei Kirilenko

All- Star season (2004): 16.5 pts., 8.1 rebs.

Career Averages: 12.6 pts., 5.9 rebs., 2.8 asts.

That’s right AK-47 was an All- Star back in 2004. I can’t keep it straight when he’s in Sloan’s dog house or not. How good is Kirilenko? Who knows he’s had a great season, and awful season, and some in between. (Points, rebounds, and assists nearly cut in half from 06 to 07.) He’s harder to read than some of the articles on ESPN.

23. Anthony Mason

All- Star season (2001): 16.1 pts., 9.6 rebs.

Career Averages: 10.9 pts., 8.3 rebs., 3.4 asts.
Mase had some solid seasons with the Knicks and Hornets, perhaps best known for his hair cuts. Shoulders of a linebacker with the dribbling ability of a point guard, Mason was a unique player.

22. Cedric Ceballos

All- Star season (1995): 21.7 pts., 8 rebs.

Career Averages: 14.3 pts., 5.3 rebs., 1.2 asts.

Injuries hurt Ceballos career, so I already went against my qualifications to be on this list. Ced can share this spot with McDyess, guys who had 3 very solid seasons, then because of injury look extremely average the rest of their careers.

21. Horace Grant

All- Star season (1994): 15.1 pts., 11 rebs.

Career Averages: 11.2 pts., 8.1 rebs., 2.2 asts.

Obviously Ho-Grant won 3 titles as the “rebounder” on the first trio of championships for Jordan, but don’t forget he was a big part of the Magic team with Shaq and Penny that got swept out of the Finals by Hakeem and the Rockets.

20. Charles Oakley

All- Star season (1994): 11.8 pts., 11.8 rebs.

Career Averages: 9.7 pts., 9.5 rebs., 2.5 asts.

Charles Oakley was a lot of things, but an All- Star? I would write more, but there has never been a more intimidating player in my history of watching the NBA. If there was a Bad-Ass All- Star team he’d get voted in by the fans.

19. Zydrunas Ilgauskas

All- Star seasons (2003, 2005): in ’05: 16.9 pts., 8.6 rebs.

Career Averages: 14.5 pts., 7.9 rebs., 1.8 blks.

Big Z must be good, he’s made 2 All- Star teams. I don’t see it. He, along with current teammates Wally Szczerbiak (#17) and Ben Wallace helped inspire this article.

18. Nick Van Exel

All- Star season (1998): 13.8 pts., 6.9 asts.

Career Averages: 14.4 pts., 2.9 rebs., 6.6 asts.

Nick the Quick. The guy could play, but like everyone else on this list you don’t think “All-Star” when you hear his name. He actually had better seasons than the year he was selected to the team.

17. Wally Szczerbiak

All- Star season (2002): 18.7 pts., 4.8 rebs.

Career Averages: 15 pts., 4.1 rebs., 2.5 asts.

Wally World is as one dimensional a player as there is in the game today. He had a great first 6 games against the Celtics, out playing Ray Allen, but in the end he returned to form as the Cavs bowed out of the playoffs. His 15 point per game career average is the highest on this list of surprise All- Stars.

16. Brad Miller

All- Star season (2003, 2004): in ’04: 14.1 pts., 10.3 rebs.

Career Averages: 12.1 pts., 7.8 rebs., 3 asts.

Like Big Z, Miller was an All-Star not once, but twice. He even found himself on Team USA commercials. What the hell? I don’t get it either. Averaged double digit rebounds in a season just once and never scored more than 15.6 points per game.

15. Jayson Williams

All- Star season (1998): 12.9 pts., 13.6 rebs.

Career Averages: 7.3 pts., 7.5 rebs., 0.6 blks.

Not the motorcycle or white chocolate Jayson Williams, this is the “the gun went off” Jayson Williams. Check the stats and he was a monster on the boards. After 5 struggling seasons to begin his career, he put up 10+ rebounds his final 4 years in the league. Never a great offensive threat Big Jayson Williams was still an NBA All- Star.

14. John Starks

All- Star season (1994): 19 pts., 5.9 asts.

Career Averages: 12.5 pts., 2.5 rebs., 3.6 asts

Maybe the streakiest shooter in NBA history John Starks was one of the key figures in those solid Knick teams of the 90’s. New York fans certainly have their own opinions on Starks. (2-18 shooting in Game 7 of the NBA Finals vs. the Rockets.)

13. Christian Laettner

All- Star season: (1997): 18.1 pts., 8.8 rebs.

Career Averages: 12.8 pts., 6.7 rebs., 2.6 asts.

And he was on the Dream Team. Most people think of Laettner as a failed NBA player, but he did make the ‘97 All-Star team. One of the most hated players of all time (certainly my least favorite player ever) his actual NBA legacy probably falls somewhere in the middle of perception and reality.

12. Vlade Divac

All- Star season (2001): 12 pts., 8.3 rebs.

Career Averages: 11.8 pts., 8.2 rebs., 3.1 asts.

Vlade was traded for Kobe Bryant on draft day to the Charlotte Hornets, was a smoker, and a great passing big man.

11. A.C. Green

All- Star season (1990): 12.9 pts., 8.7 rebs.

Career Averages: 9.6 pts., 7.4 rebs., 1.1 asts.

This is probably his first time… on a list like this.

10. Jamaal Magloire

All- Star season (2004): 13.6 pts., 10.3 rebs.

Career Averages: 8.6 pts., 7.2 rebs., 1 blk.

How about Magloire? Slow start, couple decent seasons, and then fades away. Sucked before the Hornets and sucked after.

9. Rik Smits

All- Star season (1998): 16.7 pts., 6.9 rebs.

Career Average: 14.8 pts., 6.1 rebs., 1.4 asts.

The Dunking Dutchman. At 7’4 he only averages over 7 rebounds for a season once, and he didn’t block shots either. His 14.8 points per game career average is second to Wally’s 15 on this list, but neither one of these guys did a whole lot else.

8. Tyrone Hill

All- Star season (1995): 13.8 pts., 10.9 rebs.

Career Averages: 9.4 pts., 8.6 rebs., 0.8 asts.

Scored in double figures 5 years of his 14 year career with a high water mark of 13.8, the year he was named an All- Star. 4 years is the longest consecutive streak he ever played with one team. Journey men seldom make All- Star teams.

7. Antonio Davis

All- Star season (2001): 13.7 pts., 10.1 rebs.

Career Averages: 10 pts., 7.5 rebs., 1 blk.

Never scored more than 14.5 in a season and only once collected 10 boards a night. A very average player with an All- Star game on his resume.

6. Dale Davis

All- Star season (2000): 10 pts., 9.9 rebs.

Career Averages: 8 pts., 7.9 rebs., 1.2 blks.

Who’s more surprising than Antonio Davis, it’s got to be Dale Davis. Since when does 10-10 send you to the All- Star game. Marcus Camby must be scratching his head right now. Dale also finished his career shooting 56% from the stripe.

5. Kevin Duckworth

All- Star season (1989, 1991): in 91 – 15.8 pts., 6.6 rebs.

Career Averages: 11.8 pts., 5.8 pts., 0.9 asts.

We’re into the “top” 5 now so let’s get some good ones. The center from the Clyde Drexler Portland Trail Blazer teams! Career high in rebounding for this 7 footer was 8. A lifetime 12-6 guy with 2 All-Star games to his credit. Weird.

4. Theo Ratliff

All- Star season (2001): 12.4 pts., 8.3 rebs., 3.7 blks.

Career Averages: 7.9 pts., 6.3 rebs., 2.6 blks.

7.9 points per game in his career, 7 teams played for. Bill Simmons has changed his named to “Theo Ratliff’s Expiring Contract.” The guy could block shots, but is that all you have to do to make an All- Star team. (Marcus Camby is completely shocked now.) Ratliff couldn’t score or rebound.

3. Dana Barros

All- Star season (1995): 20.6 pts., 7.5 asts.

Career Averages: 10.5 pts., 1.9 rebs., 3.3 asts.

His numbers were solid in ’95 when he made the All- Star team, but every other year? Nope. It’s safe to say his AS season came out of no where. He had nothing like that before or after. But he could shoot the 3 ball.

2. B.J. Armstrong

All- Star season (1994): 14.8 pts., 3.9 asts.

Career Averages: 9.8 pts., 1.8 rebs., 3.3 asts.

BEE-JAY ARM-STRONG! That’s right, the 4th option on the 1st three Jordan championship teams. Maybe Jordan and Pippen had a lot more help than we thought, Horace Grant, Bill Cartwraight, and Armstrong were all All- Star at one time in their career. The year B.J. was an AS though, Jordan was playing AA ball. Still, this one surprised me.

1. Chris Gatling

All- Star season (1997): 19 pts., 7.9 asts.

Career Averages: 10.3 pts., 5.3 rebs., 0.7 asts.

In baseball there’s Brady Anderson, in music there’s the B’52 and other one hit wonders, in the NBA there’s Chris Gatling. He put up 19 a game the year he made the All- Star team; his next best season was 13.7, finished in single digits scoring half of his career. He definitely deserves the biggest “WHO?” of all the NBA All- Stars of the 1990s. But hey, he’s made more All- Star teams than Deron Williams, Mike Bibby, Richard Jefferson, Marcus Camby, Jason Richardson, and Lamar Odom combined.

Thursday, February 14, 2008

All-Star Festivities

-Keefe

The Celtics have officially hit the All-Star break, and at a league’s best 41-9 by the way. As promised here are a few quick thoughts about all of the festivities that take place during NBA All-Star Weekend. (Note: I am going to keep it regarding on the court activities, and not try to guess the next Adam “Pacman” Jones, although that could be fun too.) There are technically 6 different events, but I am only going to talk about 5, because the “shooting stars” is a waste of time for everyone involved. The schedule really gets going Friday night with the T-Mobile Rookie Challenge. You think we might see the D-Wade/ Barkley commercial a few times this weekend?

Rookie Challenge: The rookie roster (in order they were drafted this year): Kevin Durant (2nd), Al Horford (3rd), Mike Conley (4th), Jeff Green (5th), Yi Jianlian (6th), Sean Williams (17th), Juan Carlos Navarro (40th), Luis Scola (56th), and Jamario Moon (undrafted).

The roster starts out true to form with 5 of the top 6 players from this past June’s draft with the notable omission of the injured Greg Oden. After that you can start to see where teams may have stumbled in the draft. Just because you don’t make the rookie game after 50 games of your career doesn’t mean you won’t be a solid player, but chances are you won’t be on the team that drafted you. As a Celtics fan I thought Glen Davis would find his way on this team (before he hurt his knee last night), but I can’t take anyone of this list.

Sophomore team: Brandon Roy, Rajon Rondo, LaMarcus Aldridge, Rudy Gay, Daniel Gibson, Paul Millsap, Andrea Bargnani, Jordan Farmer, and Ronnie Brewer.

Busy weekend for Gay (dunk), Gibson (3 point), and Roy (All-Star). It’s not going to matter as the sophomores always win this game, and usually big. I expect the same. Prediction: Sophomores

Saturday Night

Skills Challenge: Jason Kidd (who knows what jersey he’ll be wearing), Dwayne Wade (Who’s in your 5?), Deron Williams, and Chris Paul.

Williams is the only one making his first appearance in this skills game, and is the only one not playing in the game on Sunday. Kidd and Wade have both won it in the past. Not sure how you pick a winner here, but I’ll go with one of the best players from the first half. Prediction: Chris Paul.

Three Point Shootout: Jason Kapono (defending champ), Peja Stojakovic (2-time champ), Steve Nash, and 3 first timers in Kobe Bryant, Rip Hamilton, and Daniel ‘Boobie’ Gibson.

Pretty good cast here featuring 3 All-Stars. I’m interested to watch Kobe in action in this event. I think Boobie and Rip both struggle in their first competition. In the end I think Kapono defends his crown, and earns some of that money he got to go to Canada. Prediction: Jason Kapono

Slam Dunk Contest: Gerald Green (defending champion), Dwight Howard, and 2 first timers in Rudy Gay and Jamario Moon.

Gerald is still in the league? Or did they just ask him back as the defending champ? Could he be the first player to win both the NBA and D-League slam dunk contest? Some people around here were reluctant to include Green in the KG deal. I’m not sure he’ll even be in the league when his contract runs out. With all that said, he can dunk, and that’s the point on Saturday night. Dwight Howard wants to move the hoop up to 12 feet. Why not let him? His height is going to once again hurt him. Gay has had some unbelievable in game dunks this year, and no one is really talking about him in this. Prediction: Rudy Gay

Sunday’s All-Star Game:

East Starters: Jason Kidd (how does this work if he’s in Dallas?), Dwayne Wade, LeBron James, Kevin Garnett (Doc will make a decision here), and Dwight Howard.

Reserves: Paul Pierce, Chris Bosh, Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton, Joe Johnson, Antawn Jamison, Caron Butler (injured), Rasheed Wallace (replacement), and Ray Allen (replacement).

West Starters: Kobe Bryant, Allen Iverson, Carmelo Anthony, Tim Duncan, and Yao Ming.

Reserves: Steve Nash, Chris Paul, Amare Stoudemire, David West, Brandon Roy, Carlos Boozer, and Dirk Nowitzki.

Really not sure what the deal is with Jason Kidd, but point guard play goes a long way in these games and with Nash and Paul running the show for the West I like their chances. Similar teams from 2007 and I think its going to be a similar result. Prediction: West

I am looking forward to all of these events, and a great second half of the NBA season, particularly in the Western Conference.