19. Allen Iverson, 2009
How Chosen: Fan voting
Allen Iverson had changed conferences early in the 2008-09 season, going from the Denver Nuggets to the Detroit Pistons in a blockbuster early-November trade.
That didn’t stop the All-Star votes from pouring in, earning Iverson a starting nod for the Eastern Conference.
It was Iverson’s 10th straight All-Star nod, but he was clearly slipping, averaging 18.2 points, 5.1 assists and 3.2 rebounds on .421/.298/.787 shooting before the break. This was before the Pistons opted to just send him home for the season before getting swept in the first round of the playoffs.
Were there other Eastern Conference guards who might have been having better years than AI? Only a few—Nate Robinson of the New York Knicks, Vince Carter of the New Jersey Nets and Rajon Rondo of the Boston Celtics among them.
Rondo made huge leaps in his third season after running the Boston offense all the way to an NBA title the previous year. At the All-Star break, he was averaging 11.2 points, 8.5 assists and 5.4 rebounds on .503/.303/.625 shooting as well as playing lockdown defense on the perimeter (back when, you know, Rondo played defense).
But it wouldn’t be the first time—or the last—that the fans let popularity and sentimentality get in the way of logic when posting an All-Star vote.
Iverson played 16 minutes in the East’s 146-119 blowout loss at US Airways Center in Phoenix, scoting two points with three assists, a rebound and a steal on 1-of-4 shooting.
Next: Questionable Answer, Part Two