Last night the NHL debuted a new twist in the all-star game format by having team captains select their teams like a fantasy draft. It was a great format and it was fun to break up the Sedin brothers, to join the Staal brothers and to see who was going to picked last (Phil Kessel of the Leafs).
Since the NHL all-star draft has already happened and the NBA all-star game is just around the corner, what would be better than drafting the NBA all-stars in a similar manner. So, I got basketball guru P-Double to draft the teams with me. We based the teams on the starters that were released by the NBA last week and the potential all-stars as we see them.
The two captains were named, Derrick Rose and Chris Paul because the point guards always run the show in a game like this. P-Double won the coin flip and selected Rose as the captain of his team. That left me with Paul and the first pick.
With the first pick, I chose the King - LeBron James. You can't pass up the best player. P-Double countered with the best young player and likely scoring champ, Kevin Durant. With the second pick in his back to back, the man who rejuvenated basketball in New York was chosen - Amar'e Stoudemire. The names are flying out fast and furious and I didn't want to be caught without a big man, so Dwight Howard was my next pick. Then, I had to go with the one player who will have the killer instinct no matter the situation, Kobe Bryant. P-Double then solidified his front line with Pau Gasol and Carmelo Anthony. For my fifth starter I chose the player who will make the all-star game fun again, human highlight reel Blake Griffin. That pick let out a huge groan from P-Double as he really wanted Griffin.
Blake Griffin in the all-star format will be magical, he'll be throwing down dunks left, right and center.
After Griffin went, the teams got rounded out with Rondo and then Westbrook going back to back. The big surprise was all-star starter Dwayne Wade slipping to round 8. For one of the best all-around players in the league to fall that far in this type of draft was a little surprising, but we have seen this year though that the hybrid type guards can be tough to play with. Teams that have an "alpha dog" point guard like Rose, Paul, and Rondo are all contenders while Tyreke Evans for example has floundered with the Sacramento Kings.
Since two Toronto guys were drafting the team it was no surprise who went last - Chris Bosh. Although Bosh probably wouldn't go last if players did the draft (or fans in other cities) but for our purpose it felt right. Bosh has played well when healthy, but for all the reasons he went to Miami - winning a championship, playing with friends and exposure are all falling short. The Heat have struggled lately and the dream of 70 wins went down the toilet quickly, playing with friends hasn't worked so well as the "big 3" have all been injured and haven't found their playing style together on the court and the exposure has dipped quickly. The "big 3" has quickly turned into "Wade and LeBron", both Wade and LeBron were also voted in as starters by the fans and Bosh is left to hope that the East coaching staff chooses him. If he stays in Toronto, and carrying the team to hopefully a .500 record, he would be a lock as an all-star. Just like China votes for Yao, Canada would have voted for Bosh.
It was a fun experiment and here are the full teams, starters in bold. Leave a comment and let us know who you think wins this fictional game;
Team P-Double Team BLT
Derrick Rose Chris Paul
Kevin Durant Kobe Bryant
Amare Stoudemire Blake Griffin
Pau Gasol Dwight Howard
Carmelo Anthony LeBron James
Russel Westbrook Rajon Rondo
Dirk Nowitzki Kevin Garnett
Kevin Love Deron Williams
Paul Pierce Dwayne Wade
Raymond Felton Manu Ginobli
Tim Duncan Al Horfod
Chris Bosh Joe Johnson
