NBA ALL-STAR 2015

By: Aryan Javan

Last Thursday, the NBA All-Star starters were selected by the fans. And as for every year this open a can of worms of whether the fans should or should not be allowed to vote. For the Eastern Conference the starters are, G-Kyle Lowry (Toronto Raptors), G-John Wall (Washington Wizards), F-LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers), F-Carmelo Anthony (New York Knicks) and F-Pau Gasol (Chicago Bulls). As for the West their starters are, G-Steph Curry (Golden State Warriors), G-Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles Lakers), F-Blake Griffin (Los Angeles Clippers), F-Anthony Davis (New Orleans Pelicans) and C-Marc Gasol (Memphis Grizzlies), respectively.

For the Eastern Conference, there is really not too much debate besides for two things. First, why no one from the Eastern Conference-leading Atlanta Hawks was voted in as a starter. It almost seems that the Hawks are so efficient as a team that it hindered them from receiving any All-Star accolades. Yet, when the roster is reviewed PG Jeff Teague and PF Paul Millsap, each have statistics worthy enough to be starters. Teague averages 31 minutes a game and in those thirty minutes he puts up 17.1 points per game, 7.5 assists per game and about 2 steals per game. Compare that to All-Star starter John Wall, who averages 36 minutes a game and puts up 17.2 points per game, 10.2 assists per game and 2 steals a game. Not to say John Wall is not deserving but Teague has a better team and very comparable stats. In my opinion, he should get the nod over Wall. As for Millsap, his numbers are 17 PPG, 7.9 RPG, 3.2 APG and 1.75 SPG, a stat sheet filler. His case would be against forward Carmelo Anthony of the Knicks. Carmelo is currently on the worst team in the league, the lowly-New York Knicks. Now it is no surprise the All-Star voting by fans is a popularity contest, but just in the scope of basketball, Millsap has been more of a contributor to his team then Carmelo. According to ESPN Player Efficiency ratings Millsap is at an even 20.0 and Melo is at a 21.7. Think of it in context though, Millsap has a 20.0 rating on the best team in the league as Melo is on the worst team in the league and only 1.7 better. Now we all know Melo is a great player, but  I do not believe he should be rewarded over Millsap for playing well on a horrible team. Just this one year he could have been selected as a reserve. Keep in mind, the All-Satr game is in New York City this year, so that did probably play an integral role for his selection as a starter. The good news for us Hawks fans is that most likely Teague and Millsap and possibly Kyle Korver and Al Horford may all be voted in as reserves by the coaches vote.

For the Western Conference, there was one glaring anomaly. The elephant in the room is Kobe Bryant. We all love him, I love him, but there is no reason he should have been a starter over James Harden. The All-Star game participants should be decided by what they are doing this year, not for past accomplishments. Harden is playing at an MVP level right now averaging 27.8 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 6.8 APG and 1.96 SPG. Just like I mentioned before, the fan voting is a popularity contest. Fans around the world all know Kobe Bryant and his accomplishments so he was almost a shoe-in before the season. Bryant did tear his rotator cuff last week and is out for the remainder of the season. Most likely Harden will be his replacement which is decided by Western Conference All-Star head coach, Steve Kerr. That to me was the most glaring imperfection of the starters. Now we can make a case for other guys who were not selected as starters but I think for the most part fans got it right. Demarcus Cousins of the Sacramento Kings was overlooked but I think it plays into what I said about Carmelo. He is on a bad team so his stats may seem 'inflated'. He most likely will be voted in as a reserve. The case for LaMarcus Aldridge over Blake Griffin is a viable one. Griffin is averaging 22.8 PPG, 7.6 RPG, and 5.1 APG, respectively. Aldridge is averaging 23.3 PPG, 10.2 RPG, and 1.9 APG, respectively. Aldridge is also on a better team so in my opinion he should get the nod over Griffin. 

So all of these statistics and points of view, where am I getting at here? In my opinion, I think the NBA should change the format of All-Star voting. I think it should be reversed, I believe the starters should be voted in by the coaches and reserves be voted in by the fans. The starters are players who have played extraordinarily throughout the year and should be rewarded for doing so. I feel as though the coaches would get it more correct than the fans. By leaving the fans with the reserves they can vote in the "fan favorites" and keep the popularity contest still going.

Notable infromation about the 2015 All Star Game. It is the first time two brothers have been voted in as All-Star starters, Pau and Marc Gasol. This marks the 11th time LeBron has been selected as an All-Star. Steph Curry led the fan vote with 755, 486 votes, besting LeBron James. First time selection for starters include Kyle Lowry, Pau Gasol, Marc Gasol, John Wall, and Anthony Davis.

The All-Star reserves will be selected January 29th, 2015 at 8 PM on TNT.

HAWKS SOAR AGAIN

By: Aryan Javan

In a game where the Hawks were out-rebounded 61-42, the relentless Hawks cruised to there 13th victory in a row! The Hawks hosted the Detroit Pistons for the annual MLK Day game in Phillips Arena. The game was very much back-and-fourth with a Detroit team that had won their last 7 out of 10. Hawks point guard Jeff Teague struggled much of the afternoon, shooting 4 of 15 from the field, respectively. But the Hawks stuck to their roots, and played true team basketball to come away with another victory. Atlanta has not lost since December 26 against Milwaukee. Their next game will be against the Indiana Pacers Wednesday January 21st in Phillips Arena.
For Detroit this is a team that has gone through some what of a metamorphosis since the release of power forward Josh Smith. Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond dominated the glass today with 20 and 18 rebounds, respectively. It was still not enough to overthrow the Hawks. The Pistons also turned the ball over 19 times and shot a dismal 9 of 35 from beyond the arc. The Pistons will host the Orlando Magic Wednesday night in Michigan.

ATLANTA HAWKS STAY SOARING

By: Aryan Javan

The Atlanta Hawks just keep winning and winning. Their latest culprit was against the Boston Celtics in Boston. DeMarre "The Junkyard Dog" Carroll led the way with 22 points on 8/13 shooting. The Hawks put together another great team performance and sailed to a smooth 105-91 victory at the TD Garden.

Hawks point guard, Jeff Teague, put the win in perspective for the team, "It's just the start. It's a long season, so we're not too excited."

Even if the Hawks players are nonchalant the fans should be ecstatic. The Atlanta Hawks are solely in first place of the Eastern Conference for the first time in 17 years. They are currently on a 10 game winning streak, also the longest streak since the 97-98 season; and have won an outstanding 10 straight road games. Everything right now is going the Hawks way as they continue to win-win-win
no matter what!

Paul Millsap, Jeff Teagues and DeMarre Carol all got the nigh off in Philly when the Hawks cruised to another easy victory over the 76ers.

"I don't like it, but it's Coach's call and it paid off for us," said Millsap, who had 18 points and 10 rebounds for his ninth double-double of the season.

The Hawks next road game is against the third-place Toronto Raptors. The Raptors have won the last two meetings beating Atlanta in Atlanta and once in Toronto. They look to extend their road-game-winning streak to 11 against a very formidable opponent. The Raptors are led by all-purpose guard Kyle Lowry and the return of superstar, Demar Derozan, should make it an interesting challenge for the A.