The 6 greatest NBA players to never make an All-Star Team

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Dec 25, 2011; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Mavericks power forward Lamar Odom (7) has the ball knocked away by Miami Heat shooting guard Dwyane Wade (3) during their game at the American Airlines Center. The Heat defeated the Mavericks 105-94. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /

Non-All-Star #4: Lamar Odom

The fourth pick in the 1999 NBA Draft never quite made it to the All-Star level but that does not mean that he didn’t put together a good career. Over his career, Lamar Odom played for the Clippers, the Heat, the Lakers, and the Mavericks, averaging 13.3 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 3.7 assists.

Two of his best seasons came in 2000-01 with the Clippers (17.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.6 blocks, and 1 steal) and in 2003-04 with the Heat (17.1 points, 9.7 rebounds, 4.1 assists, and 1.1 steals). Early in his career, Odom had some trouble violating the NBA’s anti-drug policy but when he came to Miami as a restricted free agent, it seemed that he would be able to make that jump into All-Star territory.

The Heat had some interesting young talent in Dwayne Wade and Caron Butler and with the help of Odom and veteran Eddie Jones, they played much better than expected. After just one year with the Heat, Odom was traded to the Lakers along with Caron Butler and Brian Grant in exchange for star center Shaquille O’Neal.

With the Lakers, Odom was not a priority, stuck behind Kobe Bryant, Andrew Bynum, and Pau Gasol. 10 seasons into his career, he lost his starting spot and never got it back for the remainder of his career. That was the end of his All-Star hopes but winning two titles with the Lakers probably made up for some of that.

Odom certainly put up the numbers to be an All-Star and would have thrived in a positionless system, but he never quite made the leap. So, now he is among the best players to never make an All-Star team.