Russell Westbrook drives to the basket against Emmanuel Mudiay at the Pepsi Center last Jan. 19, 2016. (Photo : Getty Images/Doug Pensinger)
There was definitely a degree of controversy when the starting lineups for the 2017 NBA All Star teams were announced. On the other hand, the reserves for the East and West squads respectively all deserve their places, but it could be argued that some of them should have been starting the game instead.
For the West, it comes as no surprise that triple-double averaging Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder is on the list. He will start on the bench along with fellow guard Klay Thompson of the Golden State Warriors. Westbrook will be reunited with starter Kevin Durant with whom he confirmed he is no longer in touch with, The New York Times reported.
The frontcourt reserves of the West include Draymond Green of the Warriors, DeMarcus Cousins of the Sacramento Kings, and Marc Gasol of the Memphis Grizzlies, DeAndre Jordan of the Los Angeles Clippers, and Gordon Hayward of the Utah Jazz. All of them also could have been argued for a spot on the starting five.
Westbrook has been named the MVP in both the 2015 and 2016 All Star game, so his snub on the starting lineup was definitely the most shocking. Klay Thompson meanwhile currently has the highest scoring game of the season when he put 60 points past the Pacers.
In terms of the frontcourt, the West have plenty of scoring options with Cousins being this season's fifth top scorer, while Gasol is averaging 20.6 points per game with 64 three-pointers made compared to his 12 in the last eight seasons. Their defense is also sound, with Green is averaging 8.5 rebounds, 7.5 assists, and 1.93 steals per game in an already stacked Warriors squad.
To cap it off, Jordan and Hayward will make their first All Star appearances. This is largely due to the Jordan's league best rebounding of 14 per game as well as field goal percentage of 69 percent and Hayward's career-high 21.8 points and 5.7 rebounds per game for the season.
For the East, the guards on the bench will be Kyle Lowry of the Toronto Raptors, John Wall of the Washington Wizards, Isaiah Thomas of the Boston Celtics, and Kemba Walker of the Charlotte Hornets. Meanwhile, their additional options for the frontcourt spots include Kevin Love of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Paul Millsap of the Atlanta Hawks, and Paul George of the Indiana Pacers.
Wall is currently averaging a career-best 23.1 points per game and is the league leader in steals, although playing for a fairly average Wizards side may have hurt his chances of being a starter, Fox Sports reported. The same could be said in for Thomas and Walker whom are also averaging career-best scoring this season with 29.1 and 23 points per game respectively. Lowry could have also been a starter, but was outshone by DeMar DeRozan in an offensively sound Raptors lineup.
The East's frontcourt is highly experienced with Millsap making his fourth consecutive appearance in an All Star game since becoming a Hawks player back in 2013. Love will be making a fourth career appearance in an All Star matchup and is currently averaging a double double this season. Finally, George narrowly missed out on last years All Star MVP award with a performance that saw him post a highly impressive 41 points including nine three-pointers.
Watch the announcement video for the West All Star reserves here:
