All-Star Guards

It’s no question that the West is packed this year. The real question is though, who will make the All-Star team? The West is jammed pack full of talented guards and obviously, there are gonna be a few snubs when the teams are picked. So who is gonna make it?

Let’s look at the no brainers. Steph Curry and James Harden for sure. 2x MVP and 3x champion in Steph, and then the reigning MVP for the Beard. They’ll make it. Two of the players that concern me, however, are their teammates. Klay Thompson and Chris Paul. Klay was an All-Star last year and CP3 wasn’t… I don’t know about you, but I think CP3 was definitely snubbed last year. He proved to us that he is still one of the BEST point guards ever. His IQ was insane and he fit so well with the Rockets, that he elevated their game to another level when he was on the court. If he continues to play at that caliber, he deserves a spot. Klay, however, is a tough one. Sharpshooter and really good perimeter defender. If this were the East I would say, "Oh heck yeah Klay deserves a spot," but this is the West. Lots more talent here at the guard spot so it might be tough for Klay, especially since the Dubs added Boogie Cousins to the team. Might lower Klay’s point production.

Another player that has risen in the west is Donovan Mitchell. The kid led all rookies in scoring, led the Jazz to the West Semifinals and made the All-Rookie First Team. But is he enough to make the All-Star game this next year? I think no. But that doesn’t rule him out for upcoming years. His point production would need to drastically increase and the Jazz would have to greatly improve. All these things are highly likely for the Jazz this next season, but I think that the West has already established itself with premier guards this next year which will make it tough for Spida to make the All-star game.

Russell Westbrook should be a lock for the All-Star game. The man averaged a triple double for two straight seasons. While some may accuse him of stat-padding, it’s still impressive either way and he is skilled enough to make the All-Star team.

Devin Booker is a tough option. He is one of the best scorers in the league right now. He even dropped 70 points two seasons ago, but he still hasn’t been named an All-star. The reason is because I think Booker is only a good player and not yet an ‘elite’ player, even though his coring says otherwise. This has to do a lot with his team. The Suns have consistently been one of the worst teams by far the past few years. Because Booker, a good player, is playing with a terrible team, it makes it seem as if he is an elite player. Don’t get me wrong, Booker is an outstanding player, but he didn’t make the All-star team last year, and if the Suns don’t improve, he won’t make it this year either… unless he decides to drop 70 a few more times.

DeMar DeRozan… a newbie in the West, but the man crushed it in Toronto and I have confidence that he’s gonna make the All-Star team again this year. DeMar is underrated and he improves every year. And now he’s playing with Coach Pop, who is gonna elevate his game even more. I say yes to DeMar.

Next is Jimmy Butler. Jimmy is honestly a tough one. On the Bulls, he made a name for himself and then carried it over to Minnesota… but Minnesota is a tough. Especially with KAT and Wiggins trying to be the man. Butler has had some chemistry issues with the team and it may hurt his All-Star chances. This is going off non-physical issues though and if we go off of pure skill on the court, then yes. He is an All-star, but with the off-court issues, it may hurt him.

The last two I think should be considered is the Blazers backcourt. Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum. Dame is a for sure. First Team All-NBA last year and he no doubt will prove again why he deserved it. CJ however, is different. He’s the number two option right now in a conference where you need to be the number one if you want to make the All-Star team. He has enough potential to make it in the future but I don’t think it will be this next year.

Other considerations you could make would be Lou Williams of the Clippers and Jrue Holiday of the Pelicans. They’re good, but I don’t think make the cut. All in all, if I had to place in order of who deserved All-Star, this would be it:

Stephen Curry, James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Damian Lillard: For Sure

Chris Paul, DeMar DeRozan, Jimmy Butler: Highly Likely

Klay Thompson, Donovan Mitchell, Devin Booker: Possible but likely not this year

CJ McCollum, Lou Williams, Jrue Holiday: Not this year