2022 All-Stars

Let me get some basketball 101 out of the way real quick:

The most important skill in basketball by far is being able to score in isolation (off the dribble, posting up, or the face up jumper) at an all-star level. (To a bit of a lesser extent, taking advantage of mismatches by scoring in drop coverage in the pick n' roll is also a valuable shot creation tool). There are other important skills but this is the only one that if a player has, can make a team with a relatively weak supporting cast much better than it actually is (a perfect example: '01 Iverson). If a player doesn't have this skill, they simply aren't an all-star caliber hooper (someone like Klay in his prime, an efficient 20 points and great 3 point shooting, is the rare exception).

Anyway...

For whatever reason that only God can comprehend, I LOVE creating all-star/all-nba teams! There’s multiple things I balance (in this order): offensive production/talent (see above paragraph), responsibility for their team’s success (depending on how much success), and everything else (rebounding/defense). Anyway, this list isn't based off anything past jan 22 (explained in the comments). I have a requirement, except for replacements, of at least 30 games prior to jan 23. The positions are determined by common sense (ex: Edwards is generally viewed as a guard but is the "small forward" in Minnesota's most used starting lineup).

*The news came out on jan 25 that Durant isn’t playing so to be consistent, I’ll replace him with a frontcourt player which will be Butler (Heat). And Murray (Spurs) is a prime example of why positions aren't necessary on all-star/all-nba teams. It's impossible to have a roster full of big men or perimeter players so naturally the positions will balance themselves out without the league having to specify them on the ballots. Outside of my starting frontcourt, Murray has performed considerably better than any other frontcourt player in the West that met my games played requirement. But since common sense prevents me from listing him as a forward, I can't put him on my squad and he'll likely not get voted into the actual game.

BC: Backcourt

FC: Frontcourt

WC: Wild Card

West Starters

BC: Morant (Grizzlies)

BC: Doncic (Mavs)

FC: James (Lakers)

FC: Jokic (Nuggets)

FC: Towns (Wolves)

Bench

BC: Curry (Warriors)

BC: Booker (Suns)

FC: Edwards (Wolves)

FC: Ingram (Pelicans)

FC: Porzingis (Mavs)

WC: Paul (Suns)

WC: Mitchell (Jazz)

East Starters

BC: Lavine (Bulls)

BC: Derozan (Bulls)

FC: Durant (Nets)

FC: Antetokounmpo (Bucks)

FC: Embiid (Sixers)

Bench

BC: Young (Hawks)

BC: Harden (Nets)

FC: Brown (Celtics)

FC: Bridges (Hornets)

FC: Tatum (Celtics)

WC: Garland (Cavs)

WC: Herro (Heat)