Washington Wizards shooting guard Bradley Beal was left out of the East All-Star Reserves pool on Thursday, inciting a can't-miss rant by his fiancee Kamiah Adams, as she took center spot during a post-game appearance in NBC Sports Washington.
Both conferences had three first-time All-Star nods, yet Beal, who is having a career-season for the Wizards, fell short of the cut — angering plenty of fans, but none more than Adams, who vouched for his worth.
Via Fred Katz of The Athletic:
Kamiah Adams: “Stats don't lie. 28.6 points per game, 6.3 assists per game, 4.4 rebounds per game. Didn't make an All-Star, though? Sixth in scoring overall in the NBA, third overall in the Eastern Conference. My thing is, OK, he's on a team that has 15, 16 wins. Not on the best team in the NBA. We came into it this season knowing it was gonna be a trial year for us. But I feel like that's a joke to me.”
Glenn Consor: “Trae Young was voted in, right?”
KA: “It's a joke to me. Not taking away from his game. I've been watching him since he was in AAU when Brad's AAU team used to play against him, but he's playing cherry-picking basketball.”
GC: “It's skewed. Because it's skewed. It's skewed. That's why.”
KA: “It's a popularity contest. It's about who has the most followers on Instagram, who has the most likes, and it's a joke to me because my thing is you can't name five people that were selected for reserves on either the East or the West who are outplaying Bradley right now.”
GC: “I agree. Oh, I agree.” KA: “No one.” GC: “I agree. I agree.”
KA: “And I'm not bias because he's who I'm with, because hell, he was voted second amongst his colleagues.”
GC: “He should be starting.” KA: “Players voted him second.” GC: “It's skewed.” KA: “It's politics and it's a joke. The NBA is becoming laughable in my honest opinion.”
It's completely understandable that Adams wants to see her fiancee be celebrated for his accomplishments this season, yet she seems to be ignoring two important factors in this decision.
For one, the popular vote (50%), the votes from the players (25%) and the votes from the media (25%) only factor when it comes to the 10 starters. The reserves are chosen in a meritocracy by the 30 head coaches, per the NBA.
Even if Scott Brooks gave his vote for Beal, it's likely many other of his constituents didn't feel that way. Adams' anger is clearly misdirected, making her look ignorant and uninformed about how his fiancee wound up out of the voting.
Beal might still be able to make the roster by means of an injury replacement, with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver reserving the right to pick who he deems to be a worthy selection.
Others like Devin Booker, Karl-Anthony Towns, Paul George, and rookie Ja Morant also have a case for a selection, even if Beal and his fiancee are clearly irked by the way it all went down.
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