Eastern Conference All-Star Projections

By: Matthew Stone

CONTRIBUTING WRITER

With the All-Star game a little over a month away here are my picks. First up, the East.

Eastern Conference

G- Rajon Rondo (Boston)

While Rondo is not the prototypical point guard, he is deserving of the starting nod. Rondo’s ability to get into the paint and distribute makes him one of the most feared guards in the NBA. He leads the NBA in assists at 11.6 per game, and he’s second among point guards in rebounding with 5.1 per game. Rondo’s streaky shooting is the one fault in his game that his straining him from becoming one of the top five players in the game. Of course, Rondo becomes the starter via Derrick Rose missing the entire first half.

Next in line: Kyrie Irving (Cleveland)

G- Dwyane Wade (Miami)

Wade is having a down-season by his standards, but the Heat guard is deserving of a starting role. Wade is averaging 20.4 points per game, most by any shooting guard in the Eastern Conference. Wade is shooting a career-best 51 percent from the field and has become much more efficient while taking a backseat to Heat forward LeBron James.

Next in line: Jrue Holiday (Philadelphia)

F- Anderson Varejao (Cleveland)

A surprise to many casual fans but carrot top is having a stellar season for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Besides his scoring and rebounding Varejao is averaging 3.4 assists per game; top five amongst Eastern Conference centers. Varejao is pouring in 14.1 points a night while grabbing 14.4 rebounds a game. He is an irritant whom you love to have on your team but hate to play against. He certainly is backing up the beefy six-year/48.3 million dollar contract he signed with Cleveland in 2009.

Next in line: Brook Lopez (Brooklyn)

F- Carmelo Anthony (New York)

Carmelo Anthony has played at an MVP-level throughout the season and is an easy selection to be named an Eastern Conference All-Star Starter. Melo has led the Knicks’ resurgence to prominence and is second in the NBA in scoring with 29.2 points per game. Anthony has meshed the likes of Raymond Felton and Jason Kidd while maturing his own game. The night in night out scoring ability makes Carmelo Anthony a candidate for MVP and an All-Star Starter.

Next in line: Paul Pierce (Boston)

F- LeBron James (Miami)

Who else on the planet can do what this guy does? Nobody. LeBron James is a stat machine who is pouring in a cool 26.3 points, 8.4 rebounds and 7.3 assists per game. James has improved his consistency from the field as he is shooting 54 percent from the field and 41 percent from three-point range (both career highs). James has played in every All-Star Game since 2005 and that trend will continue with James leading the East squad.

Next in line: Josh Smith (Atlanta)

Western Conference All-Star picks to follow later this week…

-MS

Humbly I admit, LeBron is the best basketball player in the world.

By: Joe Manganiello

STAFF WRITER

LeBron James’ ninth and most highly scrutinized season appeared to be ending early.

The Heat were behind two games to one against the Pacers entering Sunday, continuing to play without the third leg of their oft-talked about trio, Chris Bosh, who is out indefinitely. Without Bosh this series, the Heat’s supporting cast has struggled, failing to yield a scorer with more than five points in their game two loss, while Dwyane Wade scored just five points in their game three loss.

The Heat knew that Sunday was a must win to keep their championship hopes alive, yet found themselves down 9-0 in the first four minutes of game four. During that stretch, the Heat missed their first four shots from the field, getting blocked on three of the attempts, while James’ had already missed a pair of shots and thrown a ball out of bounds.

The Pacers lead could have been even larger. Hibbert was called for an offensive goaltending penalty that would have given the Pacers a 9-0 lead after two minutes of action. Additionally, Paul George and George Hill missed three consecutive wide open three-pointers that could have blown the game wide open and sent the Indiana fan base into a frenzy.

But just as quick as he rises up the all-time leader boards of seemingly every offensive record in NBA history, James changed the game, the series and the outlook of his career on Sunday. LeBron James became the best player in the world on a driving slam dunk over Danny Granger.

NBA Regular Season Awards, Part One: my picks for NBA First, Second and Third teams

By: Joe Manganiello

STAFF WRITER

As we say goodbye to one of the most interesting experiments in NBA history – a 66 game regular season that felt more like the summer months of Major League Baseball – here are my picks for the highly coveted regular season awards.

NBA 1st Team

G Kobe Bryant

Kobe was crippled all season by injuries during a relentless, fast-paced season. He still averaged 27.9 ppg, his highest mark since 2007-2008. He adds 5+ rebounds and 4+ assists for good measure. The games best shooting guard since Michael Jordan remains in top form for at least one more season.

G Chris Paul

On a new team, in a slightly tweaked role and while working with much younger, underdeveloped talent than he had in New Orleans, Chris Paul had arguably his best season. He had his career low in turnovers (2.1 tpg) while also scoring 19.8 ppg and leading the NBA with 2.5 steals per game (his highest marks since 2008-09).

Paul took a team that had been a bottom dweller in the Western Conference regularly for decades, and that finished last season at 32-50, and sling shot them into the fifth seed out West. The best point guard in the NBA – sorry Derrick Rose, but Paul is the best the game has had since Stockton and is knocking on the doors of Magic and Isaiah – is an artist with a basketball in his hands. He can do anything.

F LeBron James

Another amazing season for the most controversial figure in the sport. A split of 27.1/6.2/7.9/1.9/0.8 makes 2011-12 one of his best seasons to date and a favorite (yuck…) to win his third MVP award. Beside being a nightmare for offenses to deal with, the way he aggressively overplays passing lanes and his ability to match up with any position on the court makes him a candidate for Defensive Player of the Year as well.

F Kevin Durant

Having secured his third consecutive scoring title, Durant is the best scorer in the game now. I’m sure Kobe approves of the kid’s skills; aside from averaging a league best 28 ppg, Durant pulls down 8 rebounds and 3.5 assists a game for the Thunder.

The most overrated Durant statistic is that he averages more turnovers (3.8) than assists. His job isn’t to lead the team in assists or be conservative with the ball; his job is to score the damn ball. He is the best in the league at doing that. The turnovers are because he takes risks with the basketball, like every other elite scorer in the game. LeBron only has an assist/turnover ratio of 1.80. Kobe’s assist/turnover ratio is barely above 1.00. These elite players are going to make mistakes with the basketball. Why? Because their job is to make plays with the basketball while being pressured by the best defenses in the world. They are allowed to make some mistakes.

By the way, James, Bryant and Durant all belong to one of the most exclusive clubs in the whole sport of basketball: a career 25 ppg. There are only 13 players all-time who can say that.

F Kevin Love

Love became the first player since The Big Diesel (Shaquille O’Neal) in 1999-2000 to post a 26 ppg and 13 rpg season. In fact, that feat has only been accomplished by three other players the last 30 years (O’Neal, M. Malone and Olajuwon).

The part of Love’s game that the aforementioned players never had is an elite jump shot, particularly from three-point land. Love made 1.9 three-pointers per game this season, the 16th highest mark in the NBA. He is the best power forward in the league, cutting the “Dirk-era” short with an unbelievable burst in ability and talent.