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2016 NBA All-Star Game: Selecting The Reserves

By Gerald Bourguet

January 11, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23) dribbles the basketball against Miami Heat forward Chris Bosh (1) during the fourth quarter at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Heat 111-103. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
January 11, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23) dribbles the basketball against Miami Heat forward Chris Bosh (1) during the fourth quarter at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Heat 111-103. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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2016 NBA All-Star Game
Oct 31, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) is guarded by Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23) during the first half of a game at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports /

West Frontcourt Spots

Draymond Green: 14.5 PPG, 9.4 RPG, 7.2 APG, 1.4 SPG, 1.3 BPG, .475/.414/.683 shooting, 20.3 PER

To be perfectly honest, Draymond Green not only deserves to be in the All-Star Game, he deserves to be starting in it. Anyone who joins Kawhi Leonard as a secondary MVP candidate and one of the best two-way players in the league is certainly deserving, and it doesn’t hurt that Green is leading the league in triple-doubles (eight).

Green leads the Golden State Warriors in rebounding and assists, he’s putting up career highs in scoring, assists and three-point percentage and he’s the most versatile defender on a top-five defense. There aren’t many players that can claim that kind of versatility and vitality to a team’s success, and that’s before mentioning how his swagger and confidence set the tone for this unstoppable team.

With the Warriors on the verge of becoming one of the greatest teams of all time, Green is arguably as important to the Dubs as MVP frontrunner Stephen Curry. Get used to it folks: Draymond Green is a top-10 player in this league.

DeMarcus Cousins: 27.3 PPG, 11.2 RPG, 2.8 APG, 1.3 BPG, 1.3 SPG, .450/.341/.734 shooting, 24.3 PER

DeMarcus Cousins is the best center in the NBA right now, so even though the All-Star voters seem to have embraced small-ball this year more than ever before, it’d be an outright travesty to leave off the game’s most talented big simply because he gets a technical foul every now and then.

Boogie isn’t the most likable guy at times, but in the last week, he dropped a career high 48 points on the Pacers…and then topped that performance with a 56-point outing the very next game in a double-overtime loss that might have gone differently if he hadn’t fouled out. Either way, Boogie’s newfound three-point shot, mixed with his unstoppable offense down low, makes him a no-brainer.

With the Sacramento Kings in the thick of the Western Conference playoff hunt, there’s really no excuse for Cousins to NOT be a top frontcourt selection this year.

Anthony Davis: 22.9 PPG, 10.2 RPG, 2.4 BPG, 1.8 APG, 1.3 SPG, .492/.288/.766 shooting, 24.8 PER

This season sure hasn’t gone according to plan for Anthony Davis and the New Orleans Pelicans. The Pellies sit at 12th in the Western Conference with a dismal 16-28 record, pretty much everyone other than the Brow feels expendable at this point and even when healthy, this team has failed to build any type of forward momentum.

Still, to suggest that a player of the Brow’s caliber doesn’t deserve to make the All-Star Game simply because his team is not living up to preseason expectations would be silly. After all, not many other guys in this league are putting up a 23-10-2-2-1 stat line.

You could make a case for someone like Damian Lillard, LaMarcus Aldridge or even DeAndre Jordan in Davis’ place since their teams have been far more successful this season, but the Brow is a household name who is still putting up gargantuan numbers. He and NOLA haven’t made the leap that most were expecting, but Davis is still probably All-Star-bound.

Next: West Wildcard Spots