The starters have been announced and the 2014 NBA All-Star Game is only a few weeks away; February 16th to be exact. The fans have spoken and voted to see their favorite players participate in the mid-season classic: a game filled with dunks, alley-oops, fast breaks, and zero defense always provides entertainment for the viewing audience. Who doesn't want to watch Blake Griffin jump over everybody or LeBron James soar to the hoop and have every player on the floor watch it happen? Unlike in baseball, the NBA All-Star Game is for the entertainment of the fans and players alike, and has no real value. Win or lose, everyone has a great time.
Over the past thirteen years, Los
Angeles Lakers guard, Kobe Bryant, has been a part of the All Star Game. However, this year is the first time since
the 1998-99 season in which he will not participate in the event. As you can see, Kobe has played in a total of
six games this season. Yes, I said SIX
total games, as he was recovering from his Achilles injury suffered against
Golden State towards the end of last year, and has most recently fractured the lateral
tibial plateau in his left knee, against the Memphis Grizzlies, to keep him out
of action for another few weeks.
While
we have seen Kobe in a suit and tie more often than the Lakers purple and gold
this year, the fans voted for him to start in the 2014 NBA All Star Game. Really?!
What a small sample size to deem if a player is worthy enough to start. We all know Kobe is one of the best players
in NBA history and will eventually be inducted into the Hall of Fame, but to be
voted to start the All Star Game after playing for two weeks? It makes no sense.
Being as humble as Kobe has grown to
be, he stated, “With all due respect to the fans
that voted me in, I certainly appreciate that, they know how much I appreciate
that, but you got to do the right thing as well. My fans know you got to reward these young
guys for the work that they've been putting in” and will not participate in the
2014 showcase.
Yes, he received a total
of 988,884 total votes, putting him second behind Stephen Curry (1,047,281) and
ahead of the most recently injured, Chris Paul (804,309). Kobe had more votes than Eastern Conference
starters Dwayne Wade (929,542) and Kyrie Irving (860,221), each of whom have
played the entire season. Meanwhile,
Paul has played almost six times the amount of games as Kobe and has been vital
to the Clippers in helping them to the top spot in the Pacific Division (the
Lakers are in fourth, a half-game out of last place).
In
my eyes, there are several guards from the Western Conference who deserve to
start in the All Star Game: James Harden,
Damian Lillard, and Ricky Rubio to name a few.
But when you travel the world and mention the name, “Kobe” almost
everyone you speak to knows who you are referring to. If I were to travel to France and mentioned
the name ‘Damian Lillard,’ I would receive a bunch of blank stares.
Voting for
the NBA All-Star Game starters is a popularity contest, as it is for almost
every other professional sport. Is there
a way to determine which players are deserving of an All-Star Game start while
still keeping the fans involved? Should
there be a minimum amount of games a player must play before being put onto the
ballot?
I
propose the NBA make it a fifteen game minimum before putting a
players’ name onto the ballot. This is a
large enough sample to see how the player has performed over the course of the
season and gives him a fair enough chance to play consistently well after
coming back from injury. This can help
eliminate the possibility of the fans voting in a player who has barely played
throughout the course of the season.
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