NBA: Projecting the All-Stars for 2014

Week 1 of the NBA season has come and gone, with players already making strong cases to be selected to play in the 2014 All-Star Game. It’s never too early to discuss potential All-Stars, so let’s project who will be playing in New Orleans come Feb. 16.

-Agree or disagree? Post your 12 players for each conference in the comments section below.

Western Conference

Guards

Chris Paul, Kobe Bryant, James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Damian Lillard, Stephen Curry, Andre Iguodala

Analysis: Seven guards should represent the West’s squad this year. These All-Star games are fast-paced, full of up and down the court action for the fans, and that starts with the guard play. It is a guard-driven league. As last year’s All-Star game MVP, Paul is a favorite to win the regular season trophy this year also. Once the Black Mamba returns to the court, even if he’s a slightly reduced version of himself from last season, he’ll still be one of the top vote-getters. The former teammates Harden and Westbrook should join forces once more. Iguodala was an All-Star in 2012 and is thriving with his new team. Lillard, after just a single season, seems ready to play amongst the other elite players in the game and after last year’s playoff performance, Curry is on track for his first All-Star appearance as well.

Forwards/Centers

Kevin Durant, Kevin Love, Dwight Howard, Blake Griffin, LaMarcus Aldridge

Analysis: All five of these players have to be in the discussion. Durant is a lock as the premier scorer in the league, year after year. Love has returned to Minnesota’s lineup with a passion and hunger we’ve never seen from him before and has the franchise thinking playoffs again. Howard, Griffin and Aldridge are all returning All-Star big men and each brings unique talent to the frontcourt. Howard is finally happy and healthy, plus he’s on track to lead the league in rebounding for the sixth time in his career. Griffin was a starter last year, but with how Love is playing currently, most likely will not be a starter this time around. Playing in Portland, Aldridge’s play for the most part goes unnoticed, but he’s currently top five in scoring after the first week.

Eastern Conference

Guards

Derrick Rose, Dwyane Wade, Paul George, John Wall, Kyrie Irving

Analysis: Rose’s return is one of the top storylines of the season and though it may take him a month or so to produce like the Derrick Rose we all know, he’s shown that he still has that explosive playmaking ability to finish in traffic. When Miami is not resting Wade and giving him nights off, we can still expect Wade to be one of the top shooting guards in the league. After his first All-Star appearance last year, George followed that up with a stellar playoff showing against Miami and signed a max contract extension with Indiana before the season. Wall and Irving will be All-Stars, as long as their teams are in the playoff hunt, as most are predicting.

Forwards/Centers

LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Paul Pierce, Brook Lopez, Greg Monroe, Chris Bosh, Al Horford

Analysis: No surprises here between James, Anthony, and Bosh. It’s hard to imagine any other player besides James receiving the most votes, given that he’s the best player on the planet. Pierce is playing a different role in Brooklyn this year, a role where he can thrive in down the stretch of games as the team’s clutchest player. His teammate Lopez, who was a first-timer last year, is arguably the league’s best offensive center (defense is a different story). Horford’s numbers would be even better if he had a legit center playing alongside him, but he’s still able to hold his own playing out of position at center. Detroit boasts one of the top frontcourt trios in the league with Monroe, Josh Smith and Andre Drummond, and they’re led by Monroe, who is a walking double-double.

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