Westbrook Snubbed in All-Star Starting Lineup
After 44 NBA games, the All-Star votes have been cast. But if you take a look at the starting rosters, you’ll see one glaring weakness in the Western Conference. RUSSELL WESTBROOK ISN’T ON IT. Despite averaging a triple double through the entire first half of the season; despite leading the league in scoring the entire season; despite carrying the Thunder Atlas-style to a 25-19 record, he got snubbed. It seems there are so many ‘despites’ to throw out there. But the real question is… why and how the heck did this happen?
Well the answer lies with the All-Star game’s modified voting system. How was exactly was it modified? Well in the past, voting took place via social media. But due to issues such as ballot-stuffing bots and celebrity-influenced voting, the league switched things up this year. Now, the new system is weighted such that the fan vote counts for 50 percent, while the players’ and media’s vote each count for 25 percent.
But keep in mind, there can only be two starting guards in the West. In the end it came down to a three-way tie between Westbrook, James Harden, and Steph Curry. That breakdown looked like this:
Westbrook – 3rd in fan voting, 1st in player voting, 1st in media voting.
Curry – 1st in fan voting, 3rd in player voting, 3rd in media voting.
Harden – 2nd in fan voting, 2nd in player voting, 2nd in media voting.
So why did Westbrook get snubbed? Turns out, there was a tie in total point tallies among the three guards. In such a case, it is the fan vote that breaks the tie. Since Westbrook came in third, bada bing bada boom that’s it.
But it goes deeper than that. The whole reason the League changed the format of the voting system was because it had become an inefficient popularity vote. In other words, it doesn’t matter that Russell Westbrook has been putting up trip-dubs night in and night out. It doesn’t matter that he is singlehandedly leading his team to the playoffs. What matters is, how popular is the guy? What matters is, fans like their Curry. In the scheme of things you have to consider the voting base for guys like Harden and Curry. They live in the largest states in the country. They’ve got two of the biggest fan bases in the league. And both the Rockets and the Warriors are vying for top spots in the playoffs. Meanwhile OKC has been lagging behind all year long. So it makes sense when you consider the way these guys are all playing. But the fact that fans still have so much say is going to make an impact at that level.
I mean if fans had it their way, Zaza Pachulia would be starting over Anthony Davis this year–which is absurd considering how the Brow is playing this year. Some other absurdities included Mo Williams getting a vote. And the Bucks’ Kris Middleton, who’s been out with an injury the whole year.
Currently, Westbrook leads the NBA in scoring, with an average 30.6 points per game. He’s also amassed a league-high 21 triple-doubles this season. And on top of that, he’s averaging 10.4 assists and 10.6 rebounds per game. This makes him the first player since Oscar Robertson in 1963-64 to average a triple-double at this point in a season. He’s playing at a whole other level. But apparently fans didn’t notice.
“It is what it is,” Westbrook said last Friday. “That’s the nature of the business, the game. I just play. I don’t play for All-Star bids. I play to win championships, and every night I compete at a high level, and it’ll work out.”
He’s right. It will work out. And one might even say these results will only add to the chip on Westbrook’s shoulder. He’s had it since he entered the league. And now it’s just going to get bigger. In fact, since the results came in, OKC has won three consecutive games to catapult them higher in the Northwest standings. They’ve won seven of their last ten games and now find themselves a mere game and a half behind the Utah Jazz. In the process, Westbrook added two more triple-doubles and his third highest scoring performance of this year with 45 against the Mavs.
Despite the snub, Westbrook continues to play at the highest level. And at this pace, he’s destined to win the MVP, not to mention help his team clinch a playoff berth in their first year without Kevin Durant.
In the mean time it’s worth noting that Westbrook has been named the West’s top reserve in the All-Star game. This year’s All-Star Game will take place at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans on Feb. 19. I wouldn’t doubt it if Westbrook took home the All-Star MVP when all is said and done.
“I just continue doing what I’m doing and play the game the right way,” Westbrook said after the results came in, “Everything else will work out.”
It certainly will, Russell. It certainly will.
