Nerd Sesh - NBA All-Star Selections

Published Jan 23, 2025, 1:14 AM

The nerds pick their NBA All-Stars! They debate if Karl-Anthony Towns or Evan Mobley should start in the East, whether Donovan Mitchell or Darius Garland has been the better guard for the Cavaliers, and if Trae Young and Cade Cunningham have done enough as floor-raisers to make the team. Then, in the West, they debate whether Domantas Sabonis deserves to be an all-star or if Logan would rather banish him to the shadow realm. 

Timestamps

00:00:23 - East All-Star Starters

00:13:28 - East Bench Backcourts

00:25:48 - East Bench Frontcourts

00:35:02 - East Bench Wild Cards

00:36:09 - East Honorable Mentions

00:42:40 - West All-Star Starters

00:48:20 - West Bench Backcourts

00:56:18 - West Bench Frontcourts

01:04:21 - West Bench Wild Cards

01:08:28 - West Honorable Mentions

#Volume

The volume. No, Oh my god, how could he do that?

What Charles Darwin? The nerves is where it's at. Welcome everybody back into Nerd Sash as always, I'm Carson Brad alongside and he is Logan Camden. And today we're gonna take a quick break from all of our NFL playoff coverage because we are just one day away from the official announcement of the NBA All Star Game starters for this year. So before that goes final, we have to give you our Nerd Sash All Star Team. So that's what we'll be doing today. Logan, let's start out East. Who do you have as your starters in the Eastern Conference?

My starters in the East, I've got Jaylen Brunson and Donovan Mitchell in my backcourt, and in my front court, I've got Jason Tatum, Jannis On Tetakumpo, and Evan Mobley.

Okay, so I have Bronson, I have Darius Garland starting, and then I have in my front court Tatum, Jannis and Mobley. So let's just go to what's interesting here, because I think, like Tatum and Yannis, those are no brainers. Brunson, I think is pretty clear. Maybe some people would debate that, but the Garland versus Mitchell debate is actually very interesting to me. Why did you go with Mitchell? I think he's better, but has he had the better season?

The craziest number I found in prepping for this podcast, Carson, was that the Cleveland Cavaliers having one hundred and thirty point two offensive rating with al Donovan Mitchell.

On the floor. Yeah, and there's some noise in these advanced numbers, but like it blew my top, dude, the Cavaliers are statistically eleven point one points for one hundred possessions worse with Donovan Mitchell on the floor. Now, Brandon, they still an offensive rating of one nineteen point one with Downy on the floor. That's absolutely fantastic. Yeah, well, without him, they have an offensive rating of one thirty point two. I think that's the most interesting thing about this. So enlighten me, Carson. Why is Narius Garland an All Star starter? For you?

I just think he's been their best offensive player this season. Like, I really don't think you can overstate the leap that Garland took from last year, which was a real low point for him, to this season, which has been the high of all highs man. He's been one of the best offensive players in basketball period. He's giving you twenty one points in seven assists a game on almost sixty four percent true shooting, and that's in just thirty minutes a game. Because the Cavs are blowing people out so often per thirty six, he's giving you twenty five points eight assist per game on that insane efficiency. He has been one of the best on ball scorers and playmakers in the league. He's a ninety second percentile pick and roll creator. He's an eighty fifth percentile isolation creator. Shot making has been out of this world, dude. He is shooting thirty nine percent on pull up threes. That's an elite number. He's shooting forty eight percent on catch and shoot threes. That is an a plus plus number. And he is shooting logan sixty four percent on floaters. That's on high volume. He has had the best floater game in basketball this year. He is obviously the best playmaker on the team. He's been one of the better passers in basketball and is one of the best ball handlers in basketball right It's just been an incredible combination of the ability to finish in the paint with his quickness, in his unbelievable touch and his handle, and then be this unreal shot maker from beyond the arc, and then also be such a good passer. And he's been the better offensive engine than Donovan Mitchell has this year. You mentioned it, dude, I mean specifically, with Garland on and Mitchell off, their offensive rating is over one thirty one. Think about that. That is ten points better than the Cavs offense right now, which is the best.

Offensive offense ever.

Yes, yes, like I think that Jokic had the Nuggets close to that earlier in the year, but he's never still up at one thirty one.

I've never seen a person with a mark one thirty or higher.

It's so stupid, dude. And listen, Donovan Mitchell is also having a great season. He's a no brainer as an All Star. But with him on the floor in Garland off, they have a one sixteen offensive rating. Solid. But I'm just not gonna keep the guy who's been the best offensive player on what is comfortably the number one offense in basketball out of my starting five. And if you want a cherry on top logan, the Calves are fifteen to two in clutch games this year. They have a one fifty four clutch offensive rating, which just leads the NBA by a casual thirty points. And Garland has been their leader in clutch points. He's been their leader and clutch assists, and he has a seventy nine percent true shooting in the clutch. Obviously that's a small sample size, but that's why I call the cherry on top man. This scoring efficiency, this play making, this impact on team offense, it's been incredible. He doesn't maybe have the reputation, right, we all default too, Oh, Donovan Mitchell is their best player, He's their best offensive player. This year, I think Garland has been the best offensive player, the best offensive engine. And that's what makes this Calves team so terrifying. Big picture man, because we've talked so much about Mobley's leap and we've talked about Garland's leap. But it's not just that those guys have gotten better, right, They've gone from like wherever you would have had them last year, fringe top fifty players to now both playing at a clear all NBA level. I think they all have to be in your top twenty five area at least, which means any one of them can easily your best be your best player, not for a playoff game, for a playoff series like that is the Calves special punch that they have three dudes at this level and that's why they're a thirty six and sixteen. They haven't had that top ten player, but they have had three awesome dudes who all make cases for me all star starters in the East.

Yeah, and they got a damn good you know, fourth guy and Jared Allen, and they got an awesome bench too, So yeah, the Cavs are the real deal. Let me ask you this then, So big picture, do you look at Garland and Mitchell differently? Now? Would you rather have Darius Garland than Donovan Mitchell?

No, I think that I'll take Mitchell. I still think that what Mitchell can do for you purely as a score it's just so lethal, that takeover ability, and he hasn't had his best scoring season inside the arc. Big picture, give me Mitchell. But if we're just looking at the forty games that we've got this year, I think Garland's been better, and he's also improved defensively by the way he's gotten stronger, He's given more effort on that end, so he deserves some credit for that too.

Yeah, And the other guy that I think deserves a lot of credit is Evan Mobley. And I think a lot of people may wonder why we have him over a guy like Karl Anthony Towns, and that isn't That's one that I went back and forth on. And I know we had a conversation on the show not that long ago. I want to say, a couple of weeks where we were going, would you rather have? You know? How many are better than Evan Mobley right now? And I do think Mobley's individual defensive impact puts him over the top against the guy like Kat, and Kat has obviously maximized his game in New York. It is a perfect fit. I think the city, I think the offensive situation, the players around him, how the team is constructed top to bottom. But I really just do prefer the defensive floor that Evan Mobley gives me, along with the increase we've seen from him offensively. If you've heard this one before, We've talked about Mobley a million times already through the half of this year. But he's at fifty seven percent from the field, forty three percent from deep in sixty five percent true shooting, giving you nineteen points a night. And the Cavs have a sub one to ten defensive rating with Mobley on the floor. And when I look at the Knicks major fatal flaw it is that defense. And I think Kat does bear some responsibility. And I think Kat gets bagged on way too much, and I think he bears Some people will beat that to a dead horse, right, they'll just beat the fact that he's not a defensive player when I think that he's a really good defensive rebounder, he's a really good post defender. He's just not a one man team defense the way Evan Mobley is. But that's a distinction I would make, is that Evan Mobley is that kind of impact defensive player, and that's why I went with him instead of Kat starting. But Kat's offensive case is ridiculous, and he is one of a handful of best offensive players on the planet right now. He's playing unconscious basketball.

And if we could go positionless, I would have both Mobley and Cats starting. I think they've both been outstanding and I can't lose man. These are both my guys. I mean, Mobley is really, really truly my guy, but also I love Kat and I think that he's having a career season. I am going to go with Mobley, and I think that, like Garland, his case is sold short by the raw numbers because he only plays thirty minutes a game, because the Cavs just beat the brakes off of everybody else, and of course because they staggered their minutes with their two bigs and their two guards. But per thirty six, Evan Mobley is averaging twenty two points, ten and a half rebounds, three and a half asis game on sixty five percent true shooting. He's fifth in total plus minus. This year, the Calves have been six points per one hundred possessions better. With him on the floor, he has been a top two defender on the planet with his ability to be an elite rimp protector and then also as one of the most effective bigs switching in basketball. He's done an incredible job of anchoring this defense without Jared Allen. They have a one ZHO five rating in the minutes that Mobley spends out there as their anchor without Allen. Offensively, he's done an incredible job fitting in at the four and the five, expanding his perimeter skill, doing more as a ball handler, adding strength, being more comfortable and aggressive attacking the basket, spacing the floor, playmaking. He's just gotten better in every way. So I just think, look at those per thirty six numbers, consider that offensive production per minute compared to Kat, and then you consider the huge defensive gap, which is not to rag on Cat although he is clearly a below average defensive center. It's also just to say Mobley is a as good as it gets man. Again, he's been a top two defender this season and is giving you that sort of star production offensively. I will take Mobley just barely because of that. I can't hear the argument for saying, well, hold on, you can't just inflate Mobley's numbers and say, well, if he played thirty six minutes, because he hasn't. My thing is just I'm on the side of rewarding the Cavs for being thirty six and six and blowing everybody out and everybody being so good in their minutes that they've been able to do that. That's I think it's a good thing that Mobley and Garland haven't had to play thirty five plus the minutes a game. I certainly don't think that it works against them because in their minutes they have been so excellent. But Kat is definitely the toughest cut from the starters for me. Like I said Brunson, I could see some people may be arguing, but he's had a great season. I think Kat's been the best Nick. But there's just a little bit less competition at the guard spot for these starters in the East than there is in the front court. Brunston's having a great year twenty six three and seven on over sixty percent for shooting, with just two point four turnovers, taking excellent care of the basketball, showing incredible shot making, being an elite offensive player for an elite, eleite offense an elite basketball team. So I feel pretty strongly about having him starting.

I agree with all those sentiments. That's basically what I went. I think Kat has been the better Nick this season, but it's the I can't leave Tatum off, I can't leave Jiannis offen, I can't leave Mobiley off, So Mkat would be my first guy off. He's a lock for.

Sure, absolutely, And I mean, just to really elaborate on how incredible his season has been, we're talking twenty five, fourteen and three and a half. It's insane on sixty five point five percent true shooting. Man like efficiency across play type is unbelievable as a role man, as a spot up player, as a post score, he's been a killer attacking mismatches, attacking anybody out of the post. And then is just having one of the great big man shooting seasons that we've ever seen, and is having a year that is legitimately on the short list for the greatest shot making season by a center that we have seen. Dude like, just when it comes to shot making, he is fifty nine percent on hooks, he is fifty percent on runners, he's over forty three percent from deep, and the Knicks have been way better with him on the floor ten points per one hundred possessions. They're a ninety six percentile offense when he's on the floor. He's just been game breaking there. But they're also a sixty seventh percentile defense when he's on the floor, and he has improved there. Their whole team defense has improved since early in the year. So I totally hear the case for Kat over Mobile. I'm gonna slightly prefer the two way stuff because Mobley's so special defensively, but if you just say, hey, give me the offensive juggernaut and Kat has been the second best offensive center in basketball this year, after only Niko a Jokic and there's a massive gap there, but he's having an incredible, incredible offensive season and I totally see the case.

And they're six point one points better defensively with Kat on the floor. You know, he's not Evan Mobley's level, but it's not like he's a complete liability out there. He has made them better in.

His A lot of that I think has to do with the alternatives. Well, for it's pretty clearly a below average defensive center.

Personnel around him. I'm just saying, it's not like he's making the Knicks a putrid defense, right, like he's pulling his weight. Yeah, and he's a legitimately great rebounder.

He is. He's been one of the three best rebounders in basketball this year. So he's obviously a lock as a front court reserve. Let's go to our backcourt reserves though, So for anybody who doesn't remember how the All Star format works, you have your starters, that's two guards, three front court players. You have your reserves, two guards, three front court players, then you have two wild cards. Who are your two batcourt reserves?

I went with Damian Lillard and Kate Cunningham.

Okay, interesting, I have both those guys on my team. I'll spoil that, but I happen to have them both in the wild card spots. So the two guards who I have in my reserve spots are Donovan Mitchell and Trey Young. Why do you prefer the cases that Damon Kde make?

I left Trey off my team. WHOA and Trey was my second toughest cut. There was one guy I had above.

Tray, not even the toughest cut. All right, Can I make the case for Tray then, because I feel pretty strongly that he belongs here?

Yeah.

I think the Tray is having a really, really good and an underrated season, mostly because of the raw shooting splits, which have started to trend upwards. Like in January, he's averaging twenty eight to ten on fifty nine percent true shooting. The three ball has started to heat up, but overall in the year, the raw shooting splits aren't pretty. But because of his three point volume, because of the rate at which he gets to the line. Overall efficiency is fine. He's fifty six and a half percent for shooting, and he's been a top two playmaker in basketball. He's averaging twenty three points in twelve assists per game and is creating the second most total points per game in the NBA fifty two point two points per game. Of offense and what he is doing as a floor raiser, to me, it's one of the most impressive tray seasons that we've seen, even though again the raw numbers aren't as insane. We've seen him lead supporting casts that aren't that impressive to be a top five offense before, but this year, the fact that he's carrying this group to be a seventieth percentile offense when he's on the floor and he is in a starting five that has precisely zero reliable shooters alongside him. Man, it is ridiculous. It is ridiculous. The lack of offensive skill around him. When you think about Resauche, when you think about Capella, when you think about Dyson Daniels, who's still quite limited offensively. Jalen Johnson I like, he's not a high level creator. He has really struggled as a shooter. For the last couple months. Trey just has as large a burden as anybody in basketball, and basically every time down he's creating an advantage and he's creating a good shot for his team, a team that is really overachieving. Man, Again, this was not supposed to be an offense that was as successful as they've been when Trey's on the floor. They weren't supposed to be the sixth seed. They weren't supposed to be a couple games above five hundred, and some dudes have overachieved expectations on their own rights. But I also think so much of that is a testament to the fact that Trey is just one of the great offensive engines and especially offensive floor raisers in elevators in a spot like this where the skill around him is so limited that we have in the league today, So there was really no chance that I was leaving him off.

I don't know, man, it's the the defense in the inefficiency, and I get he's got such a big burden, but that's just the balance that I really struggle to find with Trey is like, I don't know how much much to penalize him for those shortcomings, even though he's so responsible for this team's offense, and they have been horrible Without Trey on the floor. They have an offensive rating of one oh seven point three. And I mean we've seen it wasn't a lot. But he's missed three games this year. They have gone too and one in those games, but the offense wasn't great. I mean, I look at Trey as one of the worst defenders in the NBA. He's been brutally inefficient this season.

I get that he's No, he hasn't because he got Kid on your team, and he's been more efficient than Kid.

I mean by true shooting wise. Yeah, and I think he's a better offensive I think Caid's a drastically better defender than Trade.

Agree. I agree. I think that the offensive gap, though, is massive. And to say other we do be doing a disservice. And by the way, people will look and they'll say, oh, Caid plays for the Detroit Pistons and Trey plays for the Atlanta Hawks, and they'll presume that the Pistons have the worst offensive situation.

I don't think offensive situation is probably better with all the added shooting with Beasley, with Hardaway, with Tobias.

Did you see.

So did you see that graphic going around to Batcade and how like, I don't know, like half of his team last year, half of the roster is like out of the league this season.

Of course, bro, they won fourteen games. That's what happens when you win fourteen games.

It's pretty hilarious. Tray's one of the hardest guys for me to evaluate in the league. Man. I go between he's underrated and he's overrated constantly, and I don't know. I have a Hawk on my All Star team, but it's not Trey Young.

Wow. I'm presuming that that's just because the front court reserve options are a lot weaker than the backcourt reserve options in the East.

So the East backcourt is insane. It's deep as hell.

Yeah, I still got to see who you have above trade because it's like Cad and Dame again, I have them both on my team. So I'm not gonna bicker with you having one as your reserve, one as your wild card or whatever. But I do feel strongly that Trey belongs on the roster. Mitchell, I mean, he's a lock. You had a as a starter. He's twenty three, four and a half, four and a half on fifty eight percent through shooting for the thirty six and six team. He is, big picture, their best player. He obviously has to be here.

You know, and Dame has his defensive issues as well, same as Trey.

Like, there's just I know, definitely see a defensive gap between Trey and Dame.

No, there's not. I'm not making I'm not making that case. I was just gonna say. I mean, Dame's been so much more efficient than him. Again, though his job is a lot easier because he plays along Janis on Tetakumpo.

And the playmaking gap is huge. In fact, I honestly think at this point Tray has improved defensively, like he's gotten more active with his hands. I still think it's a sad defend I might slightly perform. What is he supposed to do? Though, Logan because I get to say that situation.

Is gonna say that. I get it. He is their only really good is he is their only good offensive player. I get that. I hate the way Trey Young plays basketball.

That's anesthetic shaming. I just don't know what you're supposed to do with the starting lineup of Dice.

I don't know what he's supposed to do either manon.

Johnson and click Capella. I think he's doing about as good a job as he possibly could Man, And yeah, the shot making could be a little better, But when you're averaging twelve assist the game and you're creating the second most total points per game in basketball, and you are improving the offense by as much as he has and still finding a way to be decently efficient, I've been very impressed by Trey this year. I have Okay, what about Kate? Why's Kate here?

Uh? I mean, I've just been impressed at the Caid's all around game this year, and I do think you need to heat praise along the front office and the moves they made in this offseason to enhance him, because that's what we were saying all last year when people were disappointed with Caid's lack of development. And you watch those games and Kate is getting double teamed and triple teamed and swarmed in these games, and you're able to blitz him out of the pick and roll and just smother him because what's he gonna do? Pass it to a twenty five percent three point shooter over there in the corner, like he was so easy to play last year, and we had to push back and say, it's the situation, it's not Cad. But I think you've seen Caid's playmaking floor. She also has been pretty damn inefficient, true shooting lies and turning the ball over. Him and Troy both have struggled with that. He's at four and a half turnovers per game at fifty five percent true shooting, but he improves the offense by over seven points per one hundred possessions. They also plummet when Cad is off the floor, but I think he's a legitimately good defender and I don't see a glaring two way case. And I think the team's success is enough this year to where Cad can be on the team. I think last year, you know, if you were making the case, they just didn't win nearly enough games. This year, Yeah, you talk about Atlanta, you know, overachieving. I think Detroit is also overachieved. I thought they were going to be a bottom of the barrel team in the East, same as Atlanta, and they've just over achieved expectations, and I think that needs to be rewarded.

Cad and Trey have a lot of similarities in terms of their cases. Right they are who are going to have some of the rougher efficiency that you'll see, but they have big raw offensive numbers, especially when it comes to the playmaking the assists, and they just have these insane offensive burdens because I mean, Detroit's offensive skill around him has improved a lot, but it's still rough, and especially without Jade and Ivy right like, there is still a great deal of responsibility on Caid's shoulders. So those guys will be more inefficient, they will have higher turnover numbers. But I think they've both done impressive jobs as floor raisers, and Cade situation has gotten a lot better than last year, a lot better because it was horrible last year. It was nightmare stuff. He's also gotten better, though, I think he's gotten better as a playmaker. I think he's gotten significantly better as a pull up three point shooter. He's more than doubled his volume there as a pull up shooter from deep and he's shot over thirty seven percent from three this year, and he's had a really good shot making season. He's been forty eight percent in the paint outside the restricted area. Good from float range two sent for mid range. That's a solid number. But you also see that both with him and Trey, like because they are being asked to be the primary decision maker basically every time down Like their efficiency in their key play type, which for both of them is pick and roll. It's really good. I mean, as a pick and roll creator, Trays in the eightieth percentile efficiency in Caid as a pick and roll creator is in the eighty eighth percentile efficiency, which is great. And he's got one of the best post games of any guard in basketball. He's been efficient there, he's strong. It's been really impressive. Detroit's offense is seven points pour one hundred better with him. They're an above average offense with him. I don't think that it's been as good an offensive floor raising job as Trays. But if you want to say, okay, I think that that gap is offset by the two way gap, I'm totally fine with that. And like the Detroit Pistons are twenty one and eighteen when Cad plays, man they're one and three without him, they're twenty one and eighteen when he plays. That is such an impressive turnaround. He does still have his issues though. The turnovers are an issue. With cad four and a half per game, and the finishing around the rim and the ability to get quality looks around the rim. He shoots fifty four percent in the restricted area for a player of his size, a six to six strong guard, that's a really rough number. And as we've talked about before, he doesn't explode. He doesn't pop athletically around the rim, So that's been an issue for him throughout his career. But he's improved in other areas. Offensively, he's been a plus defender, he's been one of the better rim protecting guards in basketball, and he's been one of the better rebounding guards. So I do think that Caid is a lock to me. His flaws are there, but like the situation is hard, and he's done so much good that I think he's got to be here. And then Dame, I mean, he's having a slightly better season than last year. You know, he's Damian Lillard. If he's healthy, he's going to be hard to keep off an All Star team. But twenty five four and seven on over sixty two percent true shooting, been a ninetieth percentile pick and roll score, been an elite pull up shooter, fifty five percent effective field goal percentage on pull up jumpers. That's mostly from beyond the arc, but he's also been almost forty six percent for mid range, which is really good. He gets to the line at a really good rate, as he always does. I think it's been a little better than last year, basically just because the three point shooting has been better. It's not like we've seen a bounce back to twenty twenty three Damian Lillard. But he's just such a good score. He stresses defenses so far out. He's such an efficient spot up player two with his catch and shoot game, and I think he's a lock. I honestly think that to me. The backcourt spots I felt were pretty clear, but we're going to disagree somewhere.

I mean, we already disagreed, right, we know.

Right, But I don't know who you have instead of Trey, is what I'm saying. Okay, let's go to the front court, so we both have Kat obviously the other two spots. I'm very interested by it because I considered four different guys for these spots, and honestly, none of them are the strongest true All Star candidates in my eyes. Who do you have alongside Cat for your bench front court spots.

Uh So, I've got two guys with the same name. I've got Jaylen Brown and Jalen Johnson. And I think at full health, I still think christophs Porzingis is the Celtic's second best player with what he does impact wise, he hasn't played nearly enough games to qualify, and this is this isn't shade at Jalon Brown. I think Jalen Brown is deservedly here. He hasn't been as efficient this season though, but I do think that context matters. Like at full strength, I think Porzingis is just a little bit more impactful. But uh yeah, I mean Jalen's at twenty three, six and five this year. I don't think he's a drastically different player. He's still really good defensively, He's still great in transition getting out on the break, and obviously his job isn't nearly as tough as other guys because of the surplus of talent that Boston has. But I think he's a no brainer. Jalen Johnson is a little more interesting. The Hawks are eight points per one hundred posessions better defensively with Jalen Johnson on the floor. They go from a defensive rating of one to eleven point five with him to a defensive rating of one to nineteen point five without him. They're also five points better offensively with on him on the floor. There's a little bit of noise there. I think him just sharing minutes with Trey Young, I think plays into that. But Jalen Johnson's got a great all around game defensively, rebounding, trans he does so many connecting things as a wing, but he really shines defensively. He's at over a steal in a block per game this year. He's been tasked with a lot more ball handling responsibilities and stuff like that this season. He isn't the most polished jump shooter or touch shooter, and I think that's probably his biggest flaw in his game right now. But he does so many other connecting things, and especially with what he can do defensively, I think that's why he's got a beer nineteen ten and five. I mean, he just brings such an all around impact to the game, and if he can tap back into the shooting, you know the stretch that we saw last year. I mean, you're really looking at a complete basketball player with very little flaws. But I've been really impressed with the responsibility that Atlanta has felt comfortable with giving him this year more offensively. They trust him, And maybe you go, why do the Hawks have two All Stars when they haven't had as much team success, Because if you have Jalen Johnson here too, you would have Jalen Johnson and Trey Young. Personally, I prefer Johnson's all around impact to a guy like Trey, and again.

I would it's just crazy Tray's better than Jalen. But if you're making the case because of the competition at the position, I totally well.

There's the east front court has nowhere near as much depth. But I think Jalen is a vitally important cog in this machine here in Atlanta, and he deserves a lot of credit for the success that they've had this year and also Atlanta. I talked about Detroit. Atlanta has massively over achieved from preseason expectations.

And Jalen's been a huge part of that. I thought, if he played enough games last year, he should have been the most improved player, and then he got a good bit better again this year. I love Jalen Johnson. I have really fallen in love with his game over the last couple of years. I kind of thought I was going to have him here, and I kind of thought I was going to have Jalen Brown here, and I don't have either one of them here. I have, I think on the team, I don't have either one. Wow, I have the guy who I think is probably having the most underrated season in the NBA and who you might.

Not spicy for the front Spicy.

Okay, I do have Spicy p here, but that's not who I'm talking about.

That fires me up because you were shitting on Spicy p a little bit ago, man that I was just.

Saying that I preferred Jalen's case, like a month ago. But then I think Jalen's had a rougher go at it offensively over the last spicyp Yeah, but I was not shitting on spicyp. I was just hyping up my boy Jalen. But that's not who I'm talking about, Logan. I'm talking about new small forward Zach Lavine. Who is their small forward, I mean, starting backcourt is Gideon Kobe White. So I'm going to find a front court candidate where I can get one in the East. I think he can counts, and he has been one of the best offensive players in the NBA this year.

Man.

He is averaging twenty four five and four and a half on sixty four percent true shooting. And the Chicago Bulls with him on the floor actually looked like a good basketball team and a really good offense. They're twelve points per one hundred better with him overall in their ten points better per one hundred possessions. Offensively with Lavine on the floor, he is just having this lost incredible shot making, scoring season because the team around him is just a joke, and like, we know that they're playing bound. But I really hope that there is a team that is able to bring him in because I think he is such a seamless fit in so many different spots offensively, and he's just so damn good dude. And you look at his efficiency across play type. He's an eighty second percentile pick and roll scorer. He's an eighty fifth percentile transition scorer, always been one of the best scoring wings in basketball in the full court. He's such a good athlete, ninety third percentile isolation score. So you look at pick and roll, you look at isolation. He's just been unbelievable as a pull up shooter, like truly out of this world. We're talking shooting forty five percent on pull up threes logan with volume. That is stupid. And we know the athlete that he is. He's a good finisher around the rim, and he's also an eighty six percentile spot up player. He is one of the best off ball scoring wings in basketball. And by the way, he shoots forty five percent on threes off the catch too. So you look at the offensive production, the offensive efficiency, the offensive impact. He's checking all these boxes. The only problem is that he plays for the Chicago Bulls. But individually he's been amazing, and I think he's been good enough to be on this team.

Bulls tax I stand with Pablo Escoball. I can't talk about the redacted team.

I get it, I get it.

God bless him, though, Dude, can we please get him? Want to content like Tenarrow, Like who cares about Jimmy Butler, man, he's old and cooked. We want Zach Levine.

That is what I've been saying, Dude. Zach has been the better asset even before Jimmy started throwing his tantrums. I mean, Zach is younger. They've both had some health concerns, but I'm more worried about that with Jimmy. I mean, and Zach is a much easier fit.

Jimmy's what thirty six?

Now, I think Jimmy's thirty five. He's old. He's old. So I totally agree. I would love to see Zach shipped off to a serious basketball situation. And then I do have spicyp here, and it was a really difficult debate for me. Between all these guys. I think they're close. But Siakama is having a really good offensive season twenty seven, three and a half on sixty one percent true shooting. The Pacers have been more than eleven points per one hundred possessions better with him on the floor. And I just think out of the remaining candidates, him versus the Jalens, he's been by far the best offensive player this year.

I think he might be in a better two way. Well, Jaylen Johnson probably not, but I well, I think when you than Jalen Brown, Yeah, I'm saying, when you put it all together.

I think he's had the better season than Jalen Brown. Jalen Brown has had a sneaky rough season, Like he's I think improved a bit as a playmaker. His shooting has been horrible. He is thirty two percent from deep and he is thirty three percent from mid range. So it's led to a very inefficient season. I mean in the best offensive situation you could dream of.

It's also had an effect on team results for Boston too.

Yeah, Like I still really like Jalen. Like to be clear, I think he's a better player than Pascal Siakam. Has he had a better season than Siakam or Zach Levine not in my opinion, with the struggles that he has had as a shooter up to this point. Seakam and Jalen is a real mismatch too. That's a strength of his that he does really have. But Siakam is just like the ultimate mismatch man. I mean, a vast majority of defenders are just too small or they're too slow to deal with him on an island. And his body control is so good, he's so fluid, and he's got really good touch as a shot maker. So he's been a seventy fourth percentile post score, eighty third percentile isolation scorer. He's an excellent finisher. He's been elite in transition, as he always is, and he's shooting over forty percent from three. And the Pacers are back up to being the number nine offense this year. They're five games above five hundred. Things have corrected course with them, and Siakam's been their best player. And the impact is there, the production is there, the efficiency is there. We know the caliber of player that he is. I think he's had the best season of the remaining guys. Again, I would have had Jalen here a month ago because of the two way stuff. I think Jalen is such a versatile defender. He's one of the better rim protecting wings and rebounders in basketball. He's one of eight guys averaging more than a steal and a block a game, and he has taken on so much more responsibility as a playmaker. It's just he still hasn't been efficient there and he's shooting twenty two percent from three over the last two months. Basically, it's just enough of a decline for me to give that.

To Also, he improves the Pacers defense by thirteen and a half points when he's on the floor. Again, there's a little bit of noise. But that's kind of ridiculous, but's really underrated. I think he deserves to be here. He's one of my wild card spots.

Okay, he is so my wild card spots. I've already revealed. I have Dame and Caid who we've talked about. Who Logan is your last mystery wild card in the East.

I mean it's not a mystery, we just haven't gotten to him yet. This is where I have Darius Garland.

So, oh shit, I'm sorry. Who was your Oh so, it's just you had one more front court guy you had as a wild card. I didn't have either of the Jalens.

Who is your starting up? I mean, who's your bench backcourt guy for the East? You had Trey and who Donovan? Mitchell? Donovan Mitchell?

Ok okay, Cavs guards that makes sense. I mean, damn. I can't really be that mad at your choices then, But I do feel like Trey has pretty He clearly had a stronger season than spicyp I just think the offensive floor raising has been so impressive and the circumstances are so hard.

They are you think I'm out of pocket for Evan Halley is my first guy off.

Yeah, Halle over Trey this year. Yes, I think you're out of pocket for that.

I just like the way Halle plays bast Yeah, I.

Know, brother, I like the way Halle plays more too, But I don't like the way he plays when he was giving you six every other Yeah, that's true first month, or he's just.

I got a soft spot. I nothing could ever make me hate Tyrese Halliburton, dude, nothing, no bad stretch, no goofy jumper, no goofy outfit. Tyrese Halliburton's my guy.

That's real man. And you know he's obviously been playing better. He still is having some clunkers in there, but like big picture, I mean, he's basically been a nineteen to nine guy on good efficiency for the last two months and so he s bounce back. But the start was really really hard and I put a lot of that on the back. But nevertheless, that's his resume this year.

Some of the other East backcourt guys are really tough cuts this year. Tyler Hero is such a bad beat for him because this spot is so deep. He's given you twenty four a night with five assists on sixty three percent true shooting just two point four turnovers per game. He's improving the heats offense by nine point four points per under possessions when he's out there. LaMelo Ball was up near thirty points per game for the longest time. Obviously not super efficient. The only reason I didn't get him here was because he's only played twenty eight games. And again, when you're comparing it to these elite, elite cases, I think that I have to hold against him. I feel bad for a lot of these guards out East, Man, I feel like these would be not locks, but you'd feel like these would warrant all start. I think we should expand the teams, man, I think we should have like fifteen guys.

I agree. I mean, we've been saying that, dude, the All Star teams have not expanded nearly at the pace that the actual size of the NBA has that the size of the NBA rosters have and at the rate that NBA talent has improved. Give us fifteen man rosters. But the good news, I guess you could call it good news, is that like basically every year, one or two guys can't play in the game because of injury, and so we end up getting thirteen or fourteen All Stars. So in that sense, I do think it kind of matters who your first reserve is in minus probably LaMelo Man, Like LaMelo is the dude who I think, per game played at least is having the best season of the guys who I left off. I don't think he's having a better season than any of the guards that I have above him, but it is really close, and you could argue it. The difference is that he has played so many fewer games because he's only got twenty eight of them. But you know, if he's healthy until the actual All Star Game and they say, Okay, we need to find one extra dude to fill in for somebody else, maybe at that point he makes the best case. Obviously, the fans are loving it. I mean, he's leading the backcourt fan vote. And I don't know if you heard Logan, his brother released this hit song. Have you heard this? G three?

No?

Really tweaker? Oh yeah, it goes Look I'm as wearing going to WHOA? You haven't heard that?

D I've been living under a rock.

Honestly, it's a hell of a song. But you see the volume numbers, I mean twenty nine point seven and a half A sists per game. But then you see the efficiency, which is really rough, right, fifty five percent true shooting with four turnovers per game. But then you consider his situation and offensively it's one of the worst in basketball, and his offense is twelve points port one hundred better with him on the floor. That gets them to be a sixtieth percentile offense, which isn't like a really good offense, but it's impressive to get them to be just a tick above average with the personnel around him, it's a really good offensive season. I know that I have had my criticisms of LaMelo's issues, some of his decision making, some of his shot selections, some of the issues taking care of the basketball, some of the issues finishing right, the efficiency stuff when you're talking about him being in a more series situation, But like right now, him just sort of being himself and doing what he can to lift this offense. Like it's a pretty valiant effort. They're ten and eighteen with him, but they're one in eight without him, and their offense is pretty unwatchable without him. But again, he has missed more games. He does still have the efficiency issues. I'll still take Trey as an offensive floor raizer because I think the playmaking is a lot better. I think he's more of an actual advantage creator. He's still more efficient, I'll take kid because of the two way stuff. And that's another thing. I mean, LaMelo has been one of the worst defenders in basketball this year. Players shoot fifty percent when they're guarded by LaMelo. That's five percent better than their average. I don't think he really is aware that that's part of the game, you know, it's not the part that he shows up for at least. But he's having a really good season and he is definitely on the short list NFL playoffs. We're talking about NFL playoffs. You bet we are get in on the action at Draft Kings sports Book, an official sports betting partner of the NFL. Scoring touchdowns is key to winning in the NFL playoffs, and the key to you scoring big is betting on them at DraftKings, the number one place to bet touchdowns.

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Shall we move on to the west logan Let's do it all right? So let's go again to our starters. Who do you have starting out west.

In the West, I have Sga and Ant in my back court, and then in my front court, I have Kevin Durant, NICOLEA Jokic in Victor Imbonyama.

We agree here. I kind of feel like the only two spots that are really up for debate are Aunt and then maybe KD. I considered having another guy in that spot, but it's honestly probably the least inspiring Western Conference backcourt we've seen in a while, just when you consider how stacked that position group has been for so long. There's still a lot of talent, but there's a lot of dudes who are having underwhelming seasons compared to their standards. But I do have the same starting five. I do have Aunt. He's still giving you twenty six six and four on fifty nine percent through shooting. Minnesota's four points four, one hundred better with him. Obviously, he's taken this massive leap as a pull up shooter and as a three point shooter in general, and he's been a ninety second percentile spot up scorer in an eighty first percentile pick and roll scorer. So his offensive situation and some of his own shot selection has led him to not take the sort of big leap in terms of efficiency that you would hope would accompany that sort of leap as a shooter. And his playmaking has been an issue, right, he can't carry this offense that does have bad spacing and does have a lack of skill around him and is poorly constructed. But he needs to be at a better playmaker. But he has been scoring well in tough circumstances, and their offense has been a good bit better with him, and he's been more consistent than the alternatives in the backcourt. And he's the better two way player than the guys who I was really considering. So I will still take ANT. I know you love ANT, so.

Yeah, I do love Ant. I that game the other night was really frustrating when I mean, I think you see it.

Rear and Julius Randall existed.

Well, I'm sorry.

I didn't mean to remind you of that.

I just I just hate thinking about Julius Randall. I would give Julius Randall all of his minutes to nas reed. The Timberwolves. I talked to a lot of Timberwolves fans. The Timberwlves play the same game every night. You know that the will build a lead up and then in the fourth quarter they just fall apart. And then somehow it ends up the last play of the game, Anthony Edward test to shoot a contested fadeaway three, and You're like, bro, how did we get here? And why did Julius Randall miss all of his shots? I digress. The only guy that I really considered above SGA or Aunt was Steph Curry. And how transformed it if he has been on the offensive end for Golden State. Uh, he's improved Golden State's offense by seventeen points per one hundred possions when he's on the floor. It's the difference between having an offensive rating of one oh one point six and one eighteen point nine. And I do have another guard here that you know obviously would be in contention. I guess I'll spoil that. I still have Luca here, even though he's only played twenty two games. And I get that they may be a logical inconsistency, but like, oh my, I just feel like Luca was good in those twenty two games. And oh my, I mean did you just fully like I feel like he's gonna get a reserve spot, Like they're gonna put him in the game and they're gonna give it to a reserve, even though he's only played twenty two Is that not enough for you?

Yeah, it's not enough for me. You've played in half the game. Yeah, I can't give you that. Not and we don't know when he's coming back, like he's coming back soon ish.

The less cards are so underwhelming.

It is underwhelming, But I don't think you can have a guy who's missed that many games. I didn't even consider Luca. I just basically had him as does not qualify it hasn't played enough games.

Bro.

I mean, obviously Luca would be here easily. O.

I'll call the audible.

I think you should. I think having Luca here is kind of crazy. I've never considered a player with that.

Few he's going to get in though, right.

Why he's played twenty two games. I don't think he's going to get in. I mean, the fan vote will contribute, but I don't think the media and coaches will vote in a player who's played so little. Maybe I would be really surprised, honestly, But as I said, the only other spot that I think is really up for debate. I mean Yokichen SGA are having their historic seasons that we've talked about plenty. I would love to talk about them both some more, but I'll hold myself back.

AD for Wemby.

Maybe I was thinking ad for Katie. I think Wemby is, oh what I forget.

I always do the point guard shooting guard, you know, to make it like a cohesive starting unit. I do think that would be the right audible to call. Nah.

Yeah, I got Wemby and Jokic out there. We're doing the biggest lineup that anybody's ever seen. But I think Wemby, with his twenty four eleven and four on fifty nine percent through shooting and how much he's transformed the Spurs defensively, they're fifteen points one hundred better with him. I think he's a lock. Katie has missed some time in some ways. I think that that strengthens his case because the Suns went one and nine without him, yeah, and they're twenty and twelve with him. That's kind of a difference maker between him and eighty. To me, Katie has given you twenty seven, six and a half and four on sixty three percent through shooting. He's been great in the clutch, which is why even though Phoenix is on off numbers and net rating aren't super impressive with Katie, you do see that difference in terms of the record. He's been a lot better offensively than Ad, who got off to such a good offensive start to the year but then has really come back down to earth and still has a clear two way edge over KD. But this is certainly not eighty's best defensive season, and it's not his best offensive season, So I did give a slight nod to KD. Now let's get into the backcourt reserves, Logan, who are your first two guards out of the starting lineup?

STEP's a lock.

I tend to agree.

Also, real quick, these are just ridiculous on off numbers that I want to mention with the starters. Obviously, Jokicch's is crazy. Every year he's improving the Nuggets by twenty seven point four points per one hundred possessions, ridonculous, and then Wemby's improving the Spurs by sixteen point two. Those two numbers are just and world.

Well, let's not sell Shay short, Logan, because they're nineteen Yeah, that's for a hundred posessions better with him, which is insane. That's the number you don't see from dude. What's not crazy about these days?

What's so crazy out Shase.

That it's not like the Thunder just trotten out bums out, you know, like they've got an actual good roster.

They go from even team without him, just like dead average team, terrible offense but still a really good defense, to being the greatest team ever. Shay has a better on court net rating than any other superstar in NBA history in the time that we have that data, which goes back more than twenty five years. It's better than Steph's best season. It's better than any season that we've ever seen. It's incredible how monumentally great the Thunder have been with SGA and how much better he's made them. And I still don't know if everybody is fully appreciating that enough. But I digress. Are you still deciding your other I've gone back and forth.

I think I'm gonna take Devin Booker with my other spot if I can't have Luca here. I don't love the West Guards. The guys I'm looking at right now are that are on my short list that don't have good cases at all. Harden Fox can't be all Stars. In my opinion, only either of them have been good enough this year. The other guy I'm really scratching my head over is John Morant, and if I'm gonna penalize LaMelo and penalize Luca for not playing enough games, I don't know how that logic doesn't apply to Joss. So even though this has been an underwhelming year by d book standards, I'm gonna put him in my other guard spot.

So I have Steph. I do agree that Steph is a lock. I think that may surprise some people with some of the ugly moments that we've seen, but the impact is still just insane.

Right.

The fact that their offense is still seventeen points.

In Boston game the other day was rough, man.

That was a rough one, so rough, dude. The Grizzlies game was so rough, Like there have just been some oh my god, this team is so bad moments with the Warriors, and you feel sometimes like there's nothing Steph can do to save them. But then there are other moments where Steph can save them. And I know it feels like a long time ago, but the first fifteen games of the season still count to this season and it's been very rough since then. But overall, man somehow, the Warriors still have an eighty fourth percentile offense with Steph Curry on the floor. That is unbelievable when you consider all of the woes that they have had and just the personnel around him. Like, he still has the impact, he still has the efficiency twenty three, five and six on sixty two percent true shooting. He still has the skill set. Obviously, he's not the same on ball threat, carry you night after night guy that he has been even over the last couple of years. He's taken a step back, but that gravity, that shooting, that impact is still really really pronounced, and I do think that he's a lock.

Then you go book, Yeah, I go book. And it's been a disappointing season for him, especially that extended stretch without k D. He's only a forty four percent from the field, thirty five percent from DP, fifty eight percent true shooting. But the overall production is still really solid twenty six, four and seven, and he is improving their offense. It's just you just want a little bit more. I do think the Sons are gonna get better with the acquisition of Nick Richards though that actually doesn't move me a ton, but it's a really good ad for the type of player that they need. But like I said, I mean, there's just a lot of underwhelming cases around the association. James Harden and his lack of efficiency, even though I do think he's an overall plus for the Clippers, like I think they'd be in the dredges without him. He's still a really fantastic passer, but the efficiency, the volume, the turnovers, I've still been disappointed. Fox has had a down year in my opinion, by his standards, I've been disappointed and Joh, I think his season maybe underwhelming to some people. He also isn't playing a ton every single night, right, Like, he's not his minutes, you know, if you extrapolated to a per thirty six minute, look, it's way better than it is. But he's missed some time. So I think D Book's just the default answer here.

I have Book here. I have Book as a wild card though, cause whoh, it's been a rough year for old D Book, who I'm a believer in, who I've been a supporter of over the years. But I think earlier in the year he was playing some of his worst basketball that we've seen in a long time. Now, I do think that we've seen him round into form. As of late January, which is his last ten games, he's averaging twenty seven and a half points in seven assists a game on sixty percent true shooting, and overall on the year, it's a disappointing book here, but like, he's still Devin Booker, and he's giving you twenty five and a half points and six and a half assists on better than fifty eight percent through shooting. And I think the big knock on Book would be how bad the Suns were with him and without KD, right the fact that they were one to nine in those games. What I would point out though, in Defensive Book is that KT is one in four in games without Book, and actually Book without KD in those minutes has a minus four net rating. KAT without Book, though, has a minus eight net rating. Like, my takeaway is not that either one of these dudes are individually responsible for those bad numbers, but just that this roster sucks so much for the reasons that we've talked about time and again that neither one can carry them as good as they are. And I do think compared to the remaining options. Book is still the best player, and he's found good enough for him now that even though it's a down year for him, I'll take him over the alternatives. There is one guard who I have above him, though, who you do not, and that is Kyrie Irving. And I think that Kyrie is having a really good season. He's giving you twenty four four and a half and five on sixty percent true shooting. And the reason that I give him the nod here is basically because of what he's done in the absence of Luca and the fact that the MAVs are eight and five with him and without Luca. And I do think that the MAVs have a good roster. I think that they have good depth. I think that they're a pretty good team defense. But he does have a real offensive load on his shoulders, and he's carried them to almost a one fifteen offensive rating when he's on the floor without Luca. That's equivalent to like the eighth best offense in basketball. That's really impressive. And the shot making with him is always out of this world, right He's forty three percent from deep. He's been really good as a finisher this year. I think what he's done shorthanded has impressed me more than say, what Book did shorthanded, which, although I just talked about how the roster around him sucked, it was still rough. It was still disappointing, and Books form earlier in the year. Just overall it was inconsistent and it was disappointing.

Sorty goll flip flop on that I have Kyrie in my last wildcard spot. But I can hear that argument that he's been better. I just think again, and maybe this isn't the most logically consistent. I think Books just the better player, the guy I'd rather have, so I get it.

But Kyrie's on ball scoring numbers man ninety fourth percentile pick and roll efficiency, eighty ninth percentile isolation efficiency.

I mean, he's the dream, he is the dream number two.

But he's having to be a number one this year and he's doing pretty well, right, He's doing a pretty good job. He's also been a ninetieth percentile spot up player. He's just such a pure shooter, dude, it's just ridiculous. Okay, then we go to the front court reserves. Who do you have.

I've got Lebron, I've got Jared Jackson Junior, and I've got Anthony Davis.

Yeah, I knew that a certain someone would not be mentioned by one Logan Camden here. Oh, we'll get there when we get there. So I have AD. I think he's an absolute lock.

Dude, are you gonna put some bonus on your team?

Don't speak over me, please, Logan. I'm holding the cont right now. It's my turn to speak. Eighty Still a lock, Still twenty six, twelve and three and a half on sixty percent true shooting. Still an elite rint protector. Still a stock machine. Hasn't been the same defensive anchor that we've seen in years past. Has had some effort issues and focus issues, and that's why the Lakers defense hasn't been as good as it could be if AD were locked in. They haven't put good personnel around him. Although obviously right now you have DFS, so that's improved the personnel. But they've only had him for what eight games, so it's been a very bad defensive situation around AD. He still hasn't done his best, but he's got to be here. Then I have Triple J. I think Triple J is a lock. I think Triple J is having a great season twenty two and a half and six and a half on fifty nine percent for shooting, and that's in just twenty nine minutes per game. Per thirty six, he's averaging twenty eight points. And I made a whole video about him. But he's just improved so much as a scorer. His handle has gotten better, his touch has gotten a good bit better. It was insane to start this year come back to earth a bit. But he's still fifty two percent in the paint outside the restricted area. That's great. He's incredibly ambidextrous as a finisher, so comfortable with the right and the left. He's got the runners, he's got the hooks. It's a really really good paint scorer in a real mismatch walking mismatch with his size and his handle and his touch. And you see that with his efficiency as an isolation scorer and as a post up scorer. He's been really really good as a pure scorer, which makes him a good offensive player, even though he's still a bad passer. And then I think he's been like a first team All defense kind of dude on the other side of the ball. Right, I've probably never been the highest on Triple J's defense because of some of his rebounding limitations and some of his limitations as a post defender as a drop defender compared to like the other elite defensive bigs. But he's having a hell of a defensive season. He's allowing the lowest opponent field goal percentage in the NBA thirty nine point two percent. By the way, second on that list, Logan is a Men Thompson, who I made a video about today, the video I've been promising for a while. It wasn't a three hour amen glaze, but it was still a sizeable amen glaze. Triple J is the only dude who's got him beat there, and he's allowing the lowest field goal percentage at the rim among all qualified players. So he's improved so much offensively, he's having a great defensive season. He's made Memphis a lot better defensively and they're the number six defense in basketball. And he's had to carry this team at times when they're down key players. He's eleven and seven without Jaw this year, who's missed a lot of time. He's seven and two without Bain. He's a no brainer. Is there anything you want to add about eighty year triple j before we get to our final front court reserve spots.

And dude, I've just been sitting here racking my brain trying to think about who it might be. You have a Men Thompson here.

Bro, Holy shit, you have no idea how much I would love that if a Men Thompson had put up his starting production over the full year. There might be a case. It'd be a long shot, but you know, I might be inclined to make it. But no, I don't have a Men here. Why is Lebron here for you? First of all, let's start there.

It's Lebron. What do you mean Bray's gonna be on the team. Lebron's probably gonna start.

Lebron is probably gonna start, but he doesn't deserve to start. I do have Lebron on my team, but I have him as a wild card. I think this is the worst Lebron season that we've seen, you know, since his rookie year, right. I mean, he's still a great basketball player, but I do think there's not a good case against him being on the team. The case against him would be, though, that the Lakers have been way worse with him on the floor nine points per one. Hunter possessions worse with him on the floor. They've been worse on both sides of the ball. And you look at the different splits with him and AD. When those two share the floor, the Lakers have a minus two net rating. That's really bad. And those are your two superstar players. When eighty is on the floor without Lebron, they have a plus three and a half net rating. They're actually a good basketball team. When Lebron is on the floor without AD, they have a negative eleven net rating. So the impact numbers for him are worse, far worse than really anybody else who we're going to talk about here. But I still just think he's too good to leave off. I think he's a hell of an offensive player. The turnover numbers are a little bit high for him this year, but he's shooting the ball really well again, right. He had his little slump earlier in the year, but he's up close to forty percent from deep. He still controls the game so well. He's still a problem as a mismatch tacker in isolation or out of the post. He's still great in transition, and he's clearly the best player remaining, so this is also just regular season. Lebron at forty years old, man, you know he's not going to put his best foot forward night after night. We'll see what he's really capable of come playoff time. I do have Demonte Sabonis above him, though, Logan as a reserve. What. I know you hate Domos so much, but he's having the best year of his career. Domos is having a really good year, man, And I know you don't want to hear it, but twenty one to fourteen and six on over sixty seven percent.

Feet King, they don't win basketball games.

The Kings aren't winning basketball games. Now, that's a facade. They've won like one fewer basketball game than the Lakers, and Domos has clearly been their best player, and Lebron has clearly been the Lakers' second best player. Like Logan, I know that you hate this man with a burning passion, and it's so intense that it makes me wonder if maybe you have something against the people of Lithuania, if maybe you're some sort of Estonia stand or I don't know what allegiances you have in northern and Eastern Europe. But Domos is having a great year, and some of the issues that he's had historically where it's like you look at the impact stuff and because of his defensive limitations, they're not really better with him on the floor or the issues that he has as a floor spacer. He's improved in a lot of those areas. They're seven and a half points porne hundred better with him on offense, and they're five points per one hundred better on defense. The floor spacing has always been such a big issue to me, and we'll see how improved Domos really is in a playoff series, how comfortable he is. But that's not what we're evaluating, Logan. We're not projected to a playoff series here, we're saying who has had the better regular season. He's leading the league in three point percentage over forty eight percent on two and a half attempts per game, significantly up to his volume, significantly up to his efficiency. He's also shoot shot forty five percent on two point jumpers, and he's having a solid defensive season. And the efficiency, bro, do I need to say it again? Sixty seven point four percent true shooting.

Yeah, Like, he's the most efficient twenty point per game scorer in the league.

Any I believe that he is. He's just not missing. He's gobbling up boards. He leads the league in rebounds while he's a top three passing center, and he's making a playoff team, which is what the Kings are right now, much better. And I don't really think there's an argument that he's been their best player this regular season. I mean, he has a plus nine net rating without Deer and Fox on the floor. So to me, this is Dolmos's best season and it's the weakest competition in the West. Like, maybe in another season, I could look at this production and I would say, Okay, but the candidates around are just too strong, Right, you have a great Devin Booker season, or you have a great John Moran season. Luca obviously could be healthy in another year, right, Like, that's just not this year. This year, I think you look at all the other candidates and they're pretty flawed, and Domos makes a really strong case.

Yeah, I don't love the case that I'm gonna that I've put myself in a corner.

This is gonna be a hater case. This is gonna be a case fueled by hate.

In my wildcard spot, because that's the only one that I haven't revealed yet. Yeah, you get Do you want to get into.

That, go for it.

I've got Alper and Sengoon in my last spot for the wildcard, and I just would feel bad if I didn't have a representative for the two seed on my team. I think this is a team that their foundation is built on great defense in these great defensive wings, and I don't know how much Sengoon is really responsible for that. They're better defensively with him on the floor. I think he's improved legitimately as a rom protector and a defender this season, and just as a defensive playmaker as well. I don't think he's as good as Domas is offensively right now. I don't think that's particularly close right Honestly, they're really similar in their archetypes, but Semngoon hasn't tapped into that jumper at all, while Sabonas has this season. I would just feel bad if I didn't have a member of the two seed on my team. And I think Simngoon's the best player for Easton. I know Green, I know Jalen Green has been been on a little bit of a run recently.

But oh, I think we don't need to bring up Jalen Green in All Star conversation. I think was bad for most of the season up to this point.

I think Simngoon's the best rocket, and I wanted to get a rocket on here.

He is definitely the best rocket personally. I just really try to view the All Star conversation within the scope of your individual performance, and I can see wanting to reward somebody, But like the Rockets are the epitome of the collective team, right, I mean, their backbone is we are an elite, elite defense, which is a collective effort. Shng Gun has improved. I do think that he is a plus defensive big now, but he's certainly not special on that end, right, and he's not their most important defender. A Men Thompson is a better defender, Tarry Easton is a better defender, Dylan Brooks is a better defender. And their death is another real strength of this team, right, I mean, before Jabari Smith went down and since then A Men has been starting like they had very clearly the best bench duo in basketball, and they just have so many different personnel combinations that they can go with, and they can go with who's hot and like it's just not really about any one player. To me, Shenng Gun is clearly the best rocket. I think A Men is the second best rocket now pretty clearly. But the thing is just with Sheng Gun, like for being a solid plus defender, I would need him to be better offensively than he is to be an All Star because he's still under fifty four percent true shooting. He's had some issues finishing around the rim and in the paint, and has not improved as a jump shooter at all. He's been really brutal as a jump shooter this year. So that's just not enough for me to pass on what I do think has been a really really big offensive efficiency gap between him and Domos.

I mean, if Delmos does something in the playoffs, Bro, maybe I'll be moved.

Hm hmm. Interesting Bro is moved by Shengbun who's never been to the playoffs.

Yep, I'm gonna stand on the yep. Okay man do It's like, you know, if I owned a restaurant or something, Dolmas would be one of those dudes on the on the wall. There's like, do not let this.

Man, you know, I felt about Julius Randall over the years, but there too for sure. Like I said, Man, I'm not the highest on Dolmos come playoff time, but I think this regular season has to be rewarded. You really, really really do not like them.

Onto Sabonis, true great rebounder, though strong as an ox, big body, can set a mean screen, can hand the ball off, you know, great rebounder. Bro called him a handoff merchant, which to some extents, but he is a very good passer.

Still. No, I don't get me wrong, I see the case. Uh and I respect your journalistic integrity. Carson.

Thanks man. You know who I really would have loved to have on this team, and a month and a half ago would have been a lock. But I just think his case has gotten a lot weaker since then. Jalen Williams. Man, because Jalen Williams has had such a great defensive race.

Yeah, he's been great defensively, been one.

Of the best defensive wings in basketball. I mean we've seen him. He's top ten five at spots.

Top ten in field goal percentage inside six feet, defensive field goal percentage.

Excuse me, and I believe that he is the best of all player shorter than six foot seven or he was on the very short list.

Men is also on that list too.

Of course he's he's an absolute monster. But like, Jadub has been so great defensively, versatile, playing multiple roles, big time defensive playmaker, And there was a time where he was humming offensively, like especially, I think it was like the first twelve or thirteen games after Chet went out. He was bawling the month of November. Really, he was bawling offensively since December. First, he's under fifty two percent for shooting, terrible efficiency, and we've talked a lot about how SGA has to shoulder this crazy load and their offense falls apart without him. Jadub could be picking up the slack for those groups without SGA and he's not. They have a one oh six offensive rating when Jadab is on the floor without SGA, and the offense actually gets a little bit better when SGA is out there without Jadab compared to when they're both on the floor. It's not a significant gap, but there is a sixteen point gap between when SGA is out there without Jadab compared to vice versa when Jadab is out there without SGA. So I just think with the offensive issues as a creator, and in terms of efficiency that we've seen since then, I couldn't have him above like a Devin Booker, who I do just think is a better basketball player. I considered Fox. It's not the best Fox season, it's been a decent season, but I'll take Booker. I think Booker is the better offensive player. And then I did consider James Harden because of the job that he has done as a floor raiser for the Clippers. And this is a team that has really overachieved. So if you talk about wanting to reward the best guy on the team that has been impressive, I think that's really the heart of Harden's case. I think his floor raising season has perhaps gotten just a little bit overrated, though I mean it's impressive. He carries a really significant load for this offense. His official see like a Trey Young's, is better than the raw field goal splits would suggest because he gets to the line. He's got average true shooting percentage fifty seven.

But the boy Norman Powell can't miss.

That's kind of what I'm saying, dude, Like, I think that the personnel on this Clippers team offensively it's not good, but is it better than like what Trey Young is working with with the Hawks. It's definitely better than that. And Trey has led the Hawks offense to be better when he's on the floor than Harden has done with the Clippers. Like again, it's impressive what he's done, and he is still such a great playmaker and he does control the game so well. But getting this group to the number twenty two offense, it's not the most incredible feat to me. I really do think the strength of this team is their defense, and they're able to prioritize building a defensive team because they trust Harden as that lead offensive decision maker. But like Logan, you put James Harden on the floor without Norman Powell this year, they have a one zero four offensive rating Norm's out there. Without James Harden, they have a one thirteen offensive rating. Like Norman Powell has legitimately just been a flamethrower and has been awesome, not just as a shooter, also as a creator out of pick and roll. Zoo is having a great season. I do think that Harden amplifies Zoo. But when Harden's on the floor, without Zoo, the Clippers have an offensive rating under one oh six. Overall, their offense is only two points pour one hundred better with him, and it's still been a below average offense on the year when Harden is on the floor, which you can't say about any of the other guys who have that like volume, floor rais or tough situation not great efficiency case right, Trey cad LaMelo, all those guys have let out better team offenses when they're on the floor. So I see the case for Harden. He's not far off for me, but I do think that he's perhaps gotten a little bit too much credit for what has been a really impressive season by the Clippers overall. But the most impressive thing has been what they've done defensively. That's where I think they deserve the most credit. And then guys like Norman Powell really overachieving.

Well, i'd had Norm probably on there before Harden.

I'm not trying to rag on Harden at all because he's having an impressive season. I just kind of think that he's gonna actually make the team, and his case isn't impressive enough for me to have him over like Devin Booker, who I just think is a better basketball player.

The only guy that I had that you didn't mention was Rudy Gobert, and he's just such a liability offensively that I just can't. Yeah, I can't bring myself to put him on the team. It's so funny, dude. He's literally the Timberwls are the same team with or without go Beart. What he brings defensively he takes away offensively. It's actually comical.

Yeah, this is not the year you're gonna get a Gobert All Star case. To me. I mean, I think it's his worst offensive season in a long time, and it's his worst defensive season. I mean, he's still last couple of years. His first year in Minnesota wasn't a great defensive season, but compared to last year, he has not been as dominant defensive force. For sure.

He still is valuable, but not valuable enough to be an All Star. Nah.

No, that's not a case that I even considered making. There you have it, folks, there are All Star teams. We will have the accompanying graphics to go with this. But it's a pretty interesting discussion this year. It always is. Some tears were spilled as I had to make some cuts, you know, That's how it always goes I just wish everybody could be an all star logan and again, maybe we'll see a couple of dudes will get in as fill ins when it comes to game day. But that's it for us. If you want more of our content, you can find all of it on our YouTube channel. We have all of our full shows about the NBA and NFL. We will be previewing the conference title games on Friday, so stay locked in for that, and you can find all of our film breakdowns and video essays that we do on YouTube. As I mentioned earlier today, I made that video about Amen. Go check it out. I had a lot of fun doing it. He is an incredible basketball player. You can also listen to our full shows across all audio platforms, and you can follow us across social TikTok, Instagram at nerd sessh, Twitter at nerd Underscore sesh. That's where you'll see the graphics from the show when we make lists or rankings or pick all star teams or awards, and you can also see clips from the show and all of our trivia content and also some little quick hitting takes that we do specifically for social, So follow us across all those platforms. If you want join our discord, if you want the link to that is at the link tree across our social media bios. And you can also check out our merch that is linked at our link tree and is at breakingta dot com. So that as always appreciate you guys. I've been Carson Braber

I have been Logan Candon, and this was nerd Sash