#NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE ALL STAR PROFESSIONAL#

And this intensely professional assassin is looking more than a little like the guy who was once Finals MVP.įoster: James Harden. The Spurs are chillingly good - in a league where team accomplishment is All-Star secret sauce.

Who should fill the West's second backcourt spot?Ībbott: Tony Parker. He's scoring nearly 26 per game while leading the league in free throw attempts.Ģ. It's powered his production to All-Star-lock status. His proclivity for fake whiplash and scoop shots that search for defensive contact comprise a maddeningly effective strategy on drives. His shooting is down, but he's improved so much in every other respect that he and Kevin Durant are leading the best Thunder team yet after losing what seemed like an integral playmaker.Įthan Sherwood Strauss, HoopSpeak: James Harden is as good as he is frustrating to watch. At the end of the day, the only player who can stop Russell Westbrook is Russell Westbrook.ĭaniel Nowell, Portland Roundball Society: Russell Westbrook. His PER is a career-high 23.7 thanks to an improved 3-point shot and a sharpened passing arsenal. Because he's so explosive on the court, he was practically built in a lab for the All-Star Game.

The most physically overwhelming point guard in all the land. Hide your mascot, Houston, because Harden is a surefire All-Star. He's not the prototypical point guard - he's better. Foster, ClipperBlog: Westbrook is probably as good as he's ever been as a distributor, ranking sixth in the league in assist percentage while posting a career-best turnover percentage. If all that scoring isn't convincing enough, consider that while relying on Harden to star every night, the Rockets are likely to defy expectations and make the playoffs in the tough-as-nails West (quite possibly against Harden's old Thunder in the first round).ĭ.J.

Nba western conference all star