No offense to Zion Williamson and his fan popularity, but either Sabonis or Markkanen deserved the third starting spot in the West frontcourt after Nikola Jokic and LeBron James.
Similar to the Eastern Conference, my Western Conference starters ballot included two players that were not named starters and thus are locks on my reserve list: Memphis’ Ja Morant and Sacramento’s Domantas Sabonis.
Over the NBA’s first 76 seasons, there have been 75 instances of a player averaging 30 ppg over the course of a season — while meeting the statistical minimums to qualify as a league leader.
The other three should be headed to Salt Lake City as well.
Another potential first-time All-Star that may be up for an end-of-season award is Sacramento’s De’Aaron Fox, who has been spectacularly productive and efficient in clutch situations.
Let’s start with the easy part: Morant, Markkanen and Sabonis are sure-fire picks.
Fox has developed strong chemistry with Sabonis in the Kings’ two-man game and the duo shares shooting or playmaking duties on pick-and-rolls, dribble handoffs and post-ups.
Now, the hard part: choosing between Devin Booker, Gilgeous-Alexander and Lillard.
Gilgeous-Alexander has the edge over Lillard and Booker as he ranks fifth in the NBA in scoring and is shooting a career-best 51%.
Morant, Gilgeous-Alexander, Sabonis and Markkanen are slam dunks as each is the lead singer of their team and, in the case of Sabonis and Markkanen, the key reason for the surprising first halves enjoyed by the Kings and Jazz.
The Western Conference standings make the “team success” element of All-Star selections much more nebulous, but Gilgeous-Alexander has simply been one of the 10 best players in the league.
Then it becomes a mix of very good players on teams that aren’t so great vs.
Based on team success, Morant should probably be the starter in the West backcourt over Doncic, who earned the nod due to his ridiculous production and a seemingly never-ending stream of must-see highlights.
In fact, the Kings probably deserve two All-Stars on this team, and Fox is the obvious choice here with Devin Booker likely unavailable due to a groin injury that has kept him out since December.
Booker played lights-out before his latest setback, as Phoenix is 18-11 with him in the lineup this season.
Many considered the Finnish forward an afterthought in the summer trade that sent Donovan Mitchell to Cleveland.
Besides, the NBA All-Star Game is all about scoring and you’ll find few better scorers than the six-time All-Star.
By clicking “Submit”, you agree to the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.