Paste BN Sports' picks for NBA All-Star Game reserves: Oladipo, Westbrook make the cut
We already know the All-Star Game starters, and Tuesday night we'll know the reserves. But ahead of that announcement, Paste BN Sports' NBA insiders Sam Amick and Jeff Zillgitt offered their latest picks for the 2018 All-Star Game.
EAST RESERVES
G: Victor Oladipo, Indiana – He is having a career year (24.2 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 3.9 apg, 48.8 FG%, 40.2 3P%) with the Pacers following a rough season in 216-17 with Oklahoma City Thunder.
G: Bradley Beal, Washington – Due for his first All-Star Game, Beal's scoring is a major factor in keeping the Wizards near the top-four teams in the East. His shooting percentages are down just a tad, but he’s still averaging a career-high in points (23.8), rebounds (4.3) and assists (3.7).
F: Al Horford, Boston – Nothing gaudy stats-wise individually, Horford does so many things on offense and defense – the necessary part that makes everything work – and his on-court/off-court team stats reveal how much better the Celtics are when he’s on the floor.
F: Kristaps Porzingis, New York – The 7-3 Porzingis has been asked to do more this season, and while he’s adjusting to that No. 1 offensive option, he’s still averaging 23.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.3 blocks and 1.2 assists and shooting 43.6% from the field and 38.7% on three-pointers.
F: Kevin Love, Cleveland – Despite Cleveland’s struggles, Love belongs. He is shooting 45.9% from the field and 40.1% on three-pointers – his best shooting seasons since he joined the Cavs – and averaging 18.6 points and 9.4 rebounds.
WC: Kyle Lowry, Toronto – This is not Lowry’s best season, but it’s still All-Star quality at 17 points, 6.7 assists, six rebounds and 1.2 steals per game for the second-best team in the East.
Soap opera: Cavs' defense at center of ongoing drama
Perfect team?Rockets starting to believe there’s nothing invincible about Warriors
Rare air: On verge of 30,000 club, LeBron James reluctant to view himself as a scorer
WC: John Wall, Washington – He was better last season, but he still makes the Wizards go with his scoring, passing, defense and speed. He's averaging 19.5 points, 9.3 assists, 1.3 steals and a career-high 35.8% on three-pointers. - Zillgitt
**
Just missed: Detroit’s Andre Drummond and Tobias Harris, Charlotte’s Kemba Walker, Orlando’s Aaron Gordon, Miami’s Goran Dragic and Milwaukee’s Khris Middleton.
WEST RESERVES
G: Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City – The reigning MVP is back to his old tricks, averaging 28.2 points, 10.4 assists and 9.8 rebounds in the past 17 games while the Thunder have gone 12-5 during that span. And despite little-to-no fanfare, Westbrook is flirting with the same triple-double average he reached last season (24.8 points, 10.1 assists, 9.7 rebounds).
G: Jimmy Butler, Minnesota – Butler’s arrival from Chicago has sparked the league’s best turnaround, as the Timberwolves entered Monday just one win shy of last season’s total (31). He’s a two-way terror and one of the game’s best stat stuffers (21.7 points, 5.4 assists, five rebounds, 2.04 steals per game), but it’s his willingness to be a chameleon that has been most impressive. Depending on the needs of the night, Butler typically finds a way to get the job done.
F: LaMarcus Aldridge, San Antonio – It was just six months ago that Aldridge, having struggled so mightily without Kawhi Leonard during the Western Conference Finals, wanted out of San Antonio. Yet more than three months into this season, with Leonard having played sparingly and now out indefinitely, it’s Aldridge’s yeoman efforts (22.8 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.1 blocks per game) that have the Spurs tied with Minnesota for third in the West (30-18).
F: Karl-Anthony Towns, Minnesota – It took a little time for Towns (20.2 points, 12 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.6 blocks per game) to get comfortable playing with Butler, but he has long since found his way – on both ends. Towns’ defensive struggles are well-chronicled, but his recent improvement has – surprise, surprise – led to a collective uptick as well (Minnesota is now 21st in defensive rating). Towns and New Orleans center DeMarcus Cousins (a Western Conference starter) are the only players averaging at least 20 points and 12 rebounds this season.
F: Draymond Green, Golden State – He’s the leading playmaker for the NBA’s best offense (7.6 assists per game, with Steph Curry second at 6.5 per); he’s the anchor for the Warriors' defense on pace to have a top five defensive rating for the fifth consecutive season; and, on both ends, he’s the fiery leader who – when he’s not losing his mind with officials and extending his league-leading technical fouls tally – keeps them engaged. There is some nuance when it comes to Green’s numbers – 11.3 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.3 blocks, 1.3 steals – but he should be an All-Star for a third time.
WC: Damian Lillard, Portland – There’s no easier way to lose an All-Star spot than to be on a bad defensive team, even moreso when you’re perceived as a major part of the problem. Yet while Lillard has been snubbed before, this season is different. Not only is he one of just four players averaging at least 25 points, six assists and four rebounds, but his Blazers, currently sixth in the West at 25-21, are seventh in defensive rating. Since Lillard entered the league in 2012, Portland has been in the top half of the league in defensive rating just once.
WC: Klay Thompson, Golden State – Thompson already qualified as one of the best shooters of all time, but he’s on pace to set new career highs in field-goal percentage (48.6), three-point percentage (45.3) and free-throw percentage (88.1) while averaging 20.6 points. Only Boston Celtics rookie Jayson Tatum has a better mark from beyond the arc (45.7), but he has taken 200 fewer attempts. Add in Thompson’s duties as the Warriors’ most reliable perimeter defender, and this All-Star case is closed. - Amick
**
Just missed: Oklahoma City's Paul George, Houston's Chris Paul, Denver's Nikola Jokic, Los Angeles Clippers DeAndre Jordan, Lou Williams, Blake Griffin.
Follow Paste BN Sports' NBA reporters Sam Amick and Jeff Zillgitt.