Predicting the Eastern Conference All Stars
The NBA All Star voting is taking plenty of criticism from players (most recently Hassan Whiteside) and true fans that would like to see the most deserving players on the court come game time. The obvious flaws in the system see Warrior’s center Zaza Pachuilia racking up over 800,000 votes, putting him ahead of Demarcus Cousins, Draymond Green, Kawhi Leonard and many more superstars. While the all star game roster may not truly tell the viewers who the best players in the league are, the gentlemen at South Side will do just that. So who are the real 2016-2017 NBA all stars? Which players have been the best at each position through the first half of the season? Let’s look at the east's starting 5 along with their backups.
Eastern Conference All Stars
PG: Isaiah Thomas 28.2 PPG, 6.2 APG, 26.82 PER (backups: John Wall, Kyle Lowry)
Isaiah has shown the ability to lead a team with the Celtics sitting at 3rd in the east. Along with that, his ability to score at will this season has made him one of the deadliest players in the league. To top that off, IT leads the NBA if 4th quarter points. While Wall and Lowry are both having all star caliber seasons, Thomas has just done too much to not start for the eastern conference. Sorry Kyrie Irving.
SG: DeMar DeRozen 28.2 PPG, 47.4 FG%, 5.4 RBG (backups: Bradley Beal, Nicolas Batum)
This one is not close. DeMar DeRozen has been an offensive machine for the 26-13 Toronto Raptors. His 28.2 PPG are comfortably leading the east with 6 points between him and the second place Beal and he ranks second in the east among SG in FG%. DeRozen also ranks 4th in APG and 3rd in RPG. Not only the best scoring SG in the east, he is the most well rounded SG in the east as well, setting him up easily to start the all star game.
SF: Lebron James 25.8 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 8.3 APG, 52 FG% (backups: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jimmy Butler)
Lebron just seems to keep improving as he gets to an age where most players begin declining. Though it's a different style of play for Lebron who is now taking a backseat to Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving in the scoring category, he still leads eastern SF in PPG and his 52 FG% is extraordinary. Taking a lesser role in scoring has helped Lebron lead SF in APG, double doubles and place second in RPG. Unfortunately for Butler and Giannis who are both more than deserving of an all star spot, Lebron is having arguably the most efficient season of his already HOF worthy career. Not to mention the Cavs are leading the eastern conference.
PF: Kevin Love 21.2 PPG, 11 RPG, 2.7 3PM, 24 double doubles (backups: Jabari Parker, Kristaps Porzingis)
Kevin Love is finally back to being the player we watched dominate the game with the T Wolves. His 21.2 PPG and 11 RPG both lead eastern PF and his 24 double doubles are twice the next closest player’s total. Though Love is missing a lot of his 3 point attempts, he still ranks 5th in 3P% and his 2.7 3PM top his competitors. It would not be right to ignore Jabari Parker’s breakout year, however the numbers just are not enough to push him past Kevin Love who has been a huge factor in the Cavs leading the east.
Center: Hassan Whiteside 17.6 PPG, 14.3 RPG, 2.2 BLKPG, 56 FG% (backups: Andre Drummond, Dwight Howard)
Whiteside has emerged as a top center in the NBA. The 7 footer leads all eastern centers in PPG and RPG while also placing top 3 in FG% and BLKPG. Though it was a tough race between him and Drummond, leading in PPG and RPG certainly tells us who the best starting option is. Dwight Howard deserves a lot of credit, having a bounce back year and even leading centers in FG% however Whiteside’s pure dominance in both the scoring and rebounding categories make him the obvious choice here.
