The All-Star reserves were announced on Tuesday afternoon just a few days after the starters were named. The list always surprises people and the debate of who got left off is the hot topic of the couple weeks leading up to the game itself.
Sources: 2021 NBA All-Star reserves:
West: Chris Paul, Paul George, Damian Lillard, Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Gobert, Zion Williamson, Anthony Davis
East: James Harden, Julius Randle, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Zach LaVine, Ben Simmons, Nikola Vucevic
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 23, 2021
The talk of players that were deserving is usually filled with good reasons, and a lot of people think the NBA should just expand the rosters of the All-Star game in hopes to include more players.
The East has a lot of questions and social media is filled with questions regarding the inclusion of Ben Simmons and the exclusion of Trae Young and Khris Middleton, to name a few.
As for the West, the list of snubs is there, and luckily enough, one player will get the chance to replace Anthony Davis as an injury replacement. However, there are a lot of snubs in the West, and here are the three biggest that got left off the initial rosters for the All-Star game.
Snub #1: Devin Booker
It was assumed by many that Booker was going to make it rather easily, and the fact that he didn't is the reason he's number one on this list. He will likely replace Davis and end up making the team, but still, this is snub number one.
He's been a huge part of the Phoenix Suns' success this season as they have run out to a top-four seed in the Western Conference. Booker is averaging 24.7 points per game this season with 3.8 rebounds and 4.3 assists.
His field goal percentage is the highest of his career at 50.1 and his three-point clip is at 38.1, just a few ticks below his career-best of 38.3 from his 2017 season.
The addition of Chris Paul, who was named an All-Star reserve, has really opened things up for Booker and allows him to do what he does best, score the ball.
Booker has scored 20 or more points in nine of his past 10 games and has dropped 30 or more in four of those games as the Suns continue to inch closer to the pair of Los Angeles teams.
Snub #2: DeMar DeRozan
DeRozan has been having the quietest year of anybody in the league and deserved the spot. Of course, leaving one of the guys above off is what's hard to decide and the fact that the San Antonio Spurs always fly under the radar didn't do him any favors.
He's averaging 19.8 points per game, which is the lowest since 2012 when he was with the Toronto Raptors. However, when we dive in deeper, you can see why he has been warranting inclusion for the game.
DeRozan has been the best player on the Spurs and is the reason why this team has surprised everybody out of the gate as they are in the middle of the Western Conference standings.
He has a career-high 89.3 clip from the free-throw line and is averaging 6.9 assists, which is also a career-high. The Spurs are 16-11 and were dismissed in the preseason as a playoff team by many analysts.
It's just tough to throw DeRozan in over one of the other players currently on the All-Star squad.
Snub #3: Mike Conley
The Utah Jazz might have three players in the All-Star game and that just sounds strange. However, they are the best team in the NBA and Conley has found a resurgence since joining the Jazz.
The former Memphis Grizzlies point guard is averaging 16.4 points with 3.4 boards and 5.6 assists and the trio of him, Rudy Gobert, and Donovan Mitchell has skyrocketed the Jazz into serious championship contenders, at least for the time being.
The biggest issue with Conley is that he's the third-best player on his team and missed a handful of games due to injury.
Nonetheless, he might find his way to the game as a reserve, depending on how everything plays out. Conley is having a terrific year, albeit not quite as good as Booker or DeRozan, and for that alone he most likely won't get the additional spot for the Davis injury replacement.
Christian Wood is another name that deserves some attention, but the fact that he got injured and missed a bunch of games is the reason he isn't exactly a snub.
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