This Year's All NBA Selections Are Going To Be An Absolute Bloodbath, Who Ya Got?
Last week I went through and gave my selections for each of the NBA Awards and for the most part that was a pretty easy exercise. It’s not exactly rocket science to think Harden should get the MVP or Luka the ROY. That is certainly not the case when it comes to the All NBA selections. I’ve been thinking about this blog ever since the Awards one went up and I keep changing my mind because things are so tight. So many players are absolutely worthy it’s a damn shame there are ultimately going to be some very deserving players left out. Not to mention all the supermax eligibility at stake for a number of guys there are tens of millions of dollars on the line for some of these guys.
With the season winding down I’m not sure what more I could see that could ultimately change where I netted out, and the fun part of this exercise is I’m sure my lists will differ from yours and you can tell me how stupid I am and who you would swap out. I do not envy the real voters who have to come up with these teams, but here was my best shot
All NBA 1st Team
A few of these were no brainers. Harden, Curry, and Giannis are for sure locks given that two of them are in contention for MVP and the other is having one of his best seasons ever and that’s saying something. For me, there were two spots up for grabs with the second forward spot and the center position. I went back for forth between PG13 and Durant and ultimately went George because I think he’s having the more complete season. More points, rebounds, 3PM, 3P%, steals, and the fact that he’s in the MVP conversation is what gave him toe edge. With Embiid, let’s call it like it is. He’s having a ridiculous season numbers wise, his impact on the Sixers is undeniable, and he’s an elite defensive center.
G – James Harden
G – Steph Curry
F – Paul George
F – Giannis Antetokounmpo
C – Joel Embiid
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All NBA 2nd Team
The second team wasn’t as hard to sort out. Obviously I’m putting Westbrook on the 2nd team because maybe you’ve heard he’s averaging a triple double for the third straight season. I know this has been the worst shooting year of his career, but you do shit like that I’m willing to look past it. I’m always rewarding Dame for what we’re seeing in Portland. I feel like people sleep on the Blazers because they play out West and are on late, but make no mistake Damian Lillard is having a ridiculous season. Now some of you may have preferred Jokic on the first team because of how good he’s been and the success of the Nuggets, but for me Embiid’s defense gave him the edge. He should definitely get this spot though, anything lower would be ridiculous.
G – Damian Lillard
G – Russell Westbrook
F – Kevin Durant
F – Kawhi Leonard
C – Nikola Jokic
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All NBA 3rd Team
This was BY FAR the hardest team to come to a conclusion on. Right off the bat you leave out guys that definitely deserve it, so here’s my line of thinking. In an ideal world, I wouldn’t have LeBron, but I can’t see him not making at least one of the 3 teams despite how bad the Lakers were. I’m pretty sure he’s made one every year of his career or something close to that. If Ben Simmons was treated as a forward I would probably give him that spot, but he’s a guard so that’s out. I’m choosing to reward Kemba for what was a pretty ridiculous individual season for him from start to finish, and I want to see him get paid since he has supermax implications if he makes it. For my center spot it was close between KAT and Gobert for me, but I look at the numbers KAT is putting up, and I know his team stinks too, but those are just too good for me to pass up. It’s not his fault Jimmy Butler boned that franchise and they spiraled. In my opinion, KAT is deserving. The hardest omissions were guys like Bradley Beal and Klay, and I didn’t even consider AD eligible because he basically hasn’t played for half a year.
G – Kyrie Irving
G – Kemba Walker
F – Blake Griffin
F – LeBron James
C – Karl-Anthony Towns
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All NBA Defense 1st Team
G – Marcus Smart
G – Jrue Holiday
F – Paul George
F – Giannis
C – Rudy Gobert
All NBA Defense 2nd Team
G – Corey Joseph
G – Mike Conley
F – Kawhi Leonard
F – Anthony Davis
C – Joel Embiid
All Rookie 1st Team
G – Luka Doncic
G – Trae Young
F – Marvin Bagley
F – Jaren Jackson Jr
F – DeAndre Ayton
All Rookie 2nd Team
G – Collin Sexton
G – Allonzo Trier
F – Rodion Kurucs
F – Kevin Huerter
F – Mitchell Robinson
Overall the defensive teams were pretty tough so it wouldn’t shock me if that’s where people disagree with me most. It also was tough leaving out guys like SGA and Shamet from the Rookie 2nd team given how good the Clippers are, but someone had to be left out. The good thing about this is it’s all about personal preference, so I’ll now ask you. For all these teams, what are you going with?