Emanuel Ginobili-All Star?...

I think he deserves to, I like him. he's that type of flying-under-the-radar guy, along with TD.

ginobili deserves it, but he has kobe, tmac, nash and ray ahead of him. considering the number of great forwards in the west, it's also unlikely he'll make it as the 11th or the 12th all star...

maybe if nash does a cassell next year, ginobili has a chance...

How about we ditch Yao and insert Manu! TD can play Center and KG power forward, so we could throw Ginobili in there somewhere. I don't think Yao deserved it this year anyway. He is playing what, 31 mpg? and not scoring well.

move everyone up 1 position and insert nash at point guard

Coach Popavich will coach the WEST that makes Manu a Lock to be on the team. sorry to all the haterz

Manu deserves it but at the expense of the Matrix and Rashard Lewis two players who also are playing very well

given that the Spurs are the #1 team his chances of being selected look good. If theres anyone that shouldnt be on the team it's Yao Ming.

Yao ming has not been all-star material. amare or gasol should be starting at Center

Amare should be.

And Kobe might not be able to play the All-Star game with his injury and all.

Yao should never start at All-Star Center. He's got no talent, he's just big. besides, it's not like he's really exciting, which is Vince's excuse.

i just realized that steve nash isnt starting for the team, which is definitley

Yao should never start at All-Star Center. He's got no talent, he's just big. besides, it's not like he's really exciting, which is Vince's excuse.

Have you ever watched Yao play? He's got great footwork and low post moves, he can hit jumpshots past 20 feet, he draws double teams, and he's also a good passer (Van Gundy's poor offensive system is more to blame for his lack of assists). According to 82games.com, he's one of the top deterrents in the paint, and he blocks the same % of inside shots as guys like Duncan and Jermaine O'Neal. His low bpg doesn't mean he's a bad shot blocker, it's the result of Van Gundy's slowtime system (which lowers ALL stats) and the fact that other players don't want to challenge his height. Yao's not a superstar yet, but he is All-Star material.

Yao should never start at All-Star Center. He's got no talent, he's just big. besides, it's not like he's really exciting, which is Vince's excuse.

Yao got no talent? who are you kidding? if that's the case, then you're trying to put him in the same category as shawn bradley and manute bol. which is definitely a no-no. yao may not be dominant as people expect him to (given his height), and he may not really be a defensive center nor rebounder, but you can't deny him his excellent footwork and shooting touch. he's also quite a good passer and free throw shooter.

but i would have to say that amare deserves to start as center. yao should still be an all-star though.

Yao's actually a really good defensive center..

Yao's actually a really good defensive center..

..that gets posterize horribly..can't recall shaq being posterized recently..same with tim duncan, but yao i can recall a few times..

Being dunked on a handful of times doesn't equate to bad defense... he's a great positional defender who utilizes his size... his DEF is very good and him combined with mutombo makes Houston the 4th best defense in the C position

we can see this is going one sided for KevC he has a Yao ming Pic for his sig.

Yao is big and hes got great footwork for a big his size.. soft touch and passing skills. I admit hes not dominating but hes still young and as far as being an all-star is concerned- hes good enough to start the all-star game.

I have total confidence in him... and the reason why Amare wasnt listed at C? Cause the League wants one more Yao vs. Shaq. Face it- the NBA is a business!

yao's defense is nothing to write home about, and he has trouble when he's being defended by quick and powerful players such as swift... he's still young, but i doubt he'll morph into another shaq or olajuwon or something... he's a different kind of center... he'll have to work on his endurance and upper body strength...

and yeah, he has to start being assertive and aggressive on both ends of the floor.

Watch this:

Link.


Thursday, February 3, 2005
Seven super subs

By Marc Stein
ESPN.com

OK. Now for the rest of the argument.

The fans have spoken. If you want to see Vince Carter and Grant Hill line up opposite Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett for the opening jump at the Pepsi Center on Feb. 20 ... it's your game.

Let's proceed to the next source of contention: All-Star reserves. On Tuesday, we'll learn the official identities of the seven East and West backups, but ESPN.com can't wait. So herewith are the Stein Line benches for each conference, following the same selection guidelines that the coaches get from the league.

That's two forwards, two guards, one center and two wild cards in each conference, with the coaches permitted to vote for players without being locked in to the positions they're listed at on the All-Star ballot.

Ready ...

... to debate?


Western Conference reserves

Guards: Steve Nash and Ray Allen


Allen Nash

The case: If you read my mythical All-Star ballot -- mythical because I don't believe in punching actual ballots, since they belong to the fans -- you know that Nash and Allen would have been my choices to start over Kobe Bryant and Tracy McGradyr]. As such, Nash and Allen are slam-dunk reserve choices, given that Phoenix and Seattle still rank as the biggest surprise teams in the league. West coaches won't need 10 seconds to fill these two spots.


Forwards: Dirk Nowitzki and Chris Webber


Webber Nowitzki

The case: Kevin Garnett is so consumed by winning that I suspect even he didn't protest too loudly Tuesday night when he heard on ESPN2 that the NBA Nation crew would have voted for Nowitzki as the West's other starter at forward alongside Tim Duncan. That's because KG, like me, puts team success above all else. Yet there's no shame for Nowitzki losing out to Duncan and Garnett in the fan vote, as both are playing at their usual MVP standard and because every good forward in the West knows there isn't much chance of unseating one of those two in the balloting process. Nowitzki's success as the fast-emerging leader of the new Mavericks nonetheless makes him an obvious first choice in this category, and Webber beats out the typically deep field of frontcourt contenders for the second slot because the Kings, at 31-14 despite their thinned-out bench, have to have an All-Star. And Webber is the most sensible Kings choice, having maintained his effectiveness and versatility (as well as drastically improving his free-throw shooting) despite the physical limitations imposed on him by ongoing knee trouble.

Center: Amare Stoudemire


Stoudemire

The case: Stoudemire prefers to be known as a forward, but he's a center by default for the Suns and thus an instant selection here. The coaches, remember, do not have to strictly follow the All-Star ballot when making their picks ... as long as the player in question really plays multiple positions. Stoudemire has been so impressive that he'll claim this spot in even fewer than 10 seconds, although Sacramento's Brad Miller deserves some kudos for making a nice late run.


Wild cards: Shawn Marion and Manu Ginobili


Ginobili Marion

The case: In this conference, which isn't as mighty as it used to be but is still teeming with parity, we lean heavily on the team-success tiebreaker for help. The Spurs, for example, have to have a second All-Star in our world, as the reigning title favorites approaching the All-Star break. As San Antonio's second-best player, statistically and intangibly, Ginobili thus beats out Tony Parker to join Duncan. Marion, meanwhile, makes it here because the Suns are right there record-wise with the Spurs, which gives them the rare justification to send a third All-Star to Denver after last season's 29-53 nightmare. It doesn't hurt that Marion's production is questionably All-Star caliber; he's averaging 19.4 points, 10.9 rebounds, 2.2 steals and 1.4 blocks as a 6-7 power forward.


The leading snubees: Memphis' Pau Gasol is becoming a regular customer here, although it was tougher to exclude him this season after his role in the Grizzlies' turnaround from a 5-11 start. Seattle's Rashard Lewis was equally tough to snub, as you can argue that the Sonics deserve two All-Stars as much as Phoenix deserves three. The Clippers' ever-steady Elton Brand is bound to be excluded by the coaches again, even though he gets better every year, and Utah's Andrei Kirilenko was headed for certain Defensive Player of the Year honors -- and a second consecutive All-Star appearance -- before a knee injury sidelined him. Parker, Sacramento's Mike Bibby and Golden State's Jason Richardson (a stretch given the Warriors' struggles) are the only other guards on the radar. Yet the big disappointment, of course, is that the host Nuggets won't come close to getting anyone on the West roster. Not Kenyon Martin, and not Carmelo Anthony.

Manu is defenetly behind Kobe, T-Mac, Nash or Allen, but he deserves the ASG. All I named before must go to the ASG but still there are two spots, Manu and Marion should be on those spots. The reserves will be announced on Feb 8th though.

Bye

ya, i saw that at espn too, and Marc Stein's picks are exactly who i woulda chosen.

Who even listens to Barkley anymore hes a washed up player nobody cares about, Kinda like Dennis Rodman.

Washed up player? I'm assuming you're talking about his shape right now

Is it possible for Mr. Duncan_125 to start a thread that isn't entirely about the San Antonio Spurs or a Spurs related player?

Pff, that's like asking Riot not to start a topic about the Wolves or Mafia about the Grizzlies

Atleast theirs isn't as biased as it used to be once upon a time, can't say that about Mr. Duncan here.