SB Nation Bloggers React To All-Star Reserve Selections

Yesterday’s announcements of the NBA All-Star reserves brought a few surprises and several snubs.

In the Eastern Conference, several of the reserves picked to play on the team are first-time selections. One of those is Gerald Wallace, whose selection represents a particular turning point for Bobcats fans. Wallace is Charlotte’s first-ever all-star, and for a fanbase that has been used to being forgotten, that’s a major source of pride.

SB Nation’s Bobcats blog Rufus on Fire explains Wallace’s merits:

He’s the front runner for Defensive Player of the Year. He’s the silent leader of a team making its first serious playoff push. And just as important to fans in Charlotte, he embodies a lot of what this fan base wants from its players: a hard worker whose biography is littered with instances when he could have given up, but worked his way past obstacles instead, and a guy who brings style and flash in an unassuming, selfless, package.

Now that he’s an All Star and has received official validation from coaches around the league, here’s hoping we see him get more tangible respect from referees and opponents as the season goes on.

Another first-time all-star, shockingly, is Deron Williams. Writing on VoteDeron.com, SB Nation’s Jazz blog SLC Dunk explains the future benefit of Williams finally making the team.

The biggest benefit going forward is that once you’re voted in once, it seems to be a lot easier to get put in the next time. And maybe we can build some momentum for next year for the fan voting. Once he’s in the game, he’ll start getting some more name recognition and should do better on the All-star ballots from the fans. This will open a lot of doors for him.

SB Nation’s Atlanta Hawks blog Peachtree Hoops is all over the coaches for not selecting Josh Smith. Smith, who we argued is the biggest snub of all, has received even more attention on Peachtree Hoops than his two all-star teammates, Joe Johnson and Al Horford.

First, lead editor hawksdawgs describes Smith as the sail of the team.

If Al Horford is the rower, the guy who always will keep the team moving through sheer force of will, and Joe Johnson is the motor who consistently powers the team through at a steady pace. Well Josh Smith is the sail. When the wind is blowing right for him, this team flies, and it looks effortless. And this season, it has been a constant damn wind gust. Josh Smith takes over games. He changes games. Josh makes horrible games worth going to. He almost single-handedly makes Mike Bibby and Jamal Crawford’s defense a non factor most nights. Read that sentence again. It is true. Josh Smith is having a career year, and he should be an all-star. Hell, the all-star game was created for people like Josh Smith. God is not happy. In the end, the fans voting for KG screwed Josh. Lets hope he takes that anger out on Friday.

However, another post on Peachtree Hoops takes a look at some advanced stats to determine that it’s a different Celtic, Paul Pierce, who lags well behind Smith.

But hey, there’s a lot more to look at. I’ve always been a fan of on/off court efficiency numbers. The Hawks are a ridonculous (I’m finding ridonculous to be less than satisfactory-I’ll accept suggestions for new words in the comments) 17.8 points per 100 possessions better with Josh Smith on the floor than off. The Celtics are a “meh” +2.2 with Pierce. Keep in mind, these numbers are entirely contextual from team to team, but that difference is staggering. In terms of Adjusted +/- numbers, which account for level of competition, have Josh Smith ranked 16th, while Paul Pierce is…well, he’s not in the top 40.

The argument is that Smith makes more of an impact for his team than Pierce. I’d probably agree with that. Unfortunately, reputation plays a far bigger role than it should in these selections.