NBA: Who actually deserves an All-Star spot?

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Dec 23, 2014; Washington, DC, USA; Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose (1) celebrates with Bulls center Joakim Noah (13) against the Washington Wizards in the fourth quarter at Verizon Center. The Bulls won 99-91. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /

Eastern Players Who Probably Shouldn’t Get In But Might Anyway:

Joakim Noah:
8.5 PPG, 9.9 RPG, 3.9 APG, 1.3 BPG, .455/—/.613 shooting, 15.6 PER

Simply put, having four Chicago Bulls players on the All-Star team is too much. They’re still my favorite to win the East when all is said and done, but they’re only third in the standings right now and unlike season’s past, Noah hasn’t had to put this team on his back.

Though he’s still a great defensive center, he’s been a step slow playing with some nagging injuries. Pau Gasol has made life easier on Noah, but he’s also stolen some of his thunder in the process. Noah represents the odd man out if someone has to be left out.

Derrick Rose:
17.2 PPG, 4.8 APG, 3.0 RPG, .406/.264/.806 shooting, 15.4 PER

I’m not trying to rain on the Bulls’ parade here. Nobody is more excited than me that we’re even talking about D-Rose being in the All-Star Game again, and if he is selected to the team, it’ll be a happy moment for a guy who’s struggled with more injuries than anyone over the last few years.

But Rose is no longer the best player on this team and with Jimmy Butler and Pau Gasol both more deserving, there’s a chance the power of his name, a lack of abundance of talent in the East and his happy narrative do more to get him in the All-Star Game than his actual play.

Nov 1, 2014; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard Joe Johnson (7) during the third quarter against the Detroit Pistons at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports /

Joe Johnson:
16.5 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 3.9 APG, .455/.385/.802 shooting, 16.0 PER

Ahh, yes. Seven-time All-Star Joe Johnson. The same Joe Johnson who somehow made the All-Star team over Kyle Lowry last season. The same Joe Johnson who’s been referred to as overpaid and overrated for years now.

Look, I have nothing against Joe Jesus. It’s also worth noting he has better numbers this season than he did last year. But when you’re the best player on a team going nowhere fast, it’s easy to accumulate a decent stat line. And with that very team trying to trade him and his awful contract away, let’s not make it “eight-time All-Star Joe Johnson.”

Paul Pierce:
12.8 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 2.1 APG, .447/.370/.786 shooting, 16.6 PER

Pierce has made the Washington Wizards a better team, there’s no doubt about it. But for the sake of not making the All-Star Game a lifetime achievement award, the truth is that The Truth is not an All-Star this season.

Anyone who plays a relatively decent season in the East is going to draw up some All-Star chatter, but the Wizards have three players more deserving than Pierce. With 10 All-Star appearances to his name, I doubt the 37-year-old Pierce would care too much about being excluded.

Al Jefferson:
18.0 PPG, 8.2 RPG, 1.9 APG, 1.1 BPG, .488/—/.698 shooting, 19.7 PER

This is kind of a formality now that Jefferson went down with a groin injury that will sideline him for a month, but even before the injury he wasn’t exactly having the same kind of revelatory season he had last year.

His numbers are down across the board, his team is near the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings and he’ll have missed a lot of games by the time the All-Star break rolls around. Let’s move on to the players who might be deserving but aren’t exactly locks either.

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