East Reserves

The All Star Game starters were announced Thursday, and to no one's surprise, Dwight will be starting for the East for the fourth consecutive year, receiving a conference high 2.1 million votes. Joining him will be Derrick Rose, Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, and Amar'e Stoudemire. Rose and Stoudemire beat out Rondo and KG for the only spots in question in the starting line up.

Now comes one of my favorite parts of the ASG, naming the reserves...

Right now, I think there are four locks for the East's bench, Rajon Rondo, Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Al Horford. With the East being a six-team league, and no player from the bad teams having a remarkable season, I think the East's remaining players will come from the big 6. Who exactly deserves the final three spots? That is a tough one. With an iota of deserving players in the East, it is going to be tough. Here are some players I think have a shot at the squad.

1. Chris Bosh- I know his production has slipped, but that was to be expected with him having two superior team mates. He still boasts a PER of around 20, despite his usage dropping by almost 5%. Probably the best bet for 5th big on the squad. 

2. Raymond Felton- All of Felton's advanced stats are pretty ordinary, but he is having his best season yet. Probably will not get in, but he has had a pretty good season for the Knicks.

3. Ray Allen- The NBA respects the Celtics. And he is still one of the best shooters in the NBA. The fact that there are really no other deserving SG in the east with Joe Johnson injured/ struggling helps his case, but the Celtics probably getting three other spots may hurt him. 

4. Josh Smith/ Joe Johnson- Smith got shafted last year. Yes he reverted back to three-chucking a little bit this year, but he is still a really exciting player to watch when he is engaged. If anything, the coaches should at least right a wrong that happened last year. Johnson, on the other hand, has had some injuries and has not played very well, but the reserve SG spot in the East really has no other options. I do not think both will go, but one is a possibility. 

5. Jameer Nelson- Hey, despite all the criticism he has received, Meer has been our second best player, and when he plays great, our team is so good. Coaches like to reward winning teams as well, so you never know, but in the end, a second Magic player is unlikely.

6. Luol Deng- The Bulls are having such a great season with so many key injuries. With Noah and Boozer all missing significant time, Deng becomes the best chance for the Bulls to have two All Stars. Like Jammer, I doubt he makes it. 

7. The Good Stat, Bad Team, Ordinary Player Group- Names like Danny Granger, Andrea Bargnani, and Brook Lopez have all put up some points, but they are all number 1 options on bad teams. Don't think these guys make it.

Looking at my locks and the other possibilities, my bench will look something like this:

PG - Rondo, Felton

SG- Allen

SF- Pierce

PF- Garnett, Bosh

C- Horford

I bet Doc will be so happy.  

So, What do you guys say? What is the Bench going to look like for the ASG?