Nothing’s official quite yet, but it looks like the NBA All-Star Game is actually going to happen in this weird Covid-19-impacted season. If all goes well before now and March, the game will likely be played sometime in March; bringing together the league’s top 24 players for the mid-season classic.

With the prospect of the NBA All-Star Game upon us, that means websites that cover the NBA start speculating on which superstars will be locked for the game, players making their first appearances, and the inevitable All-Star snubs.

Prediction: Western Conference All-Stars 2021

With a couple handfuls of games to be played before the game, here’s our take on who will be NBA All-Stars based on the games that have been played, starting with the Western Conference starters:

1. LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers
2. Zion Williamson, New Orleans Pelicans
3. Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets
4. Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks
5. Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors

If we’re talking about the players that deserve to be starters, Zion and Doncic wouldn’t be in this starting five, but we know that the starting five isn’t always the most-deserving players. Williamson and Luka will likely be voted in by fans.

As of this writing, both the New Orleans Pelicans and Dallas Mavericks are well below .500 and are on the outside looking in if the NBA Playoffs were to start today, but their inclusion in the starting lineup is based on our predictions of how All-Star voting will play out. With the starting five determined, these next three players are essentially locks and should be voted in by the coaches.

1. Kawhi Leonard, Los Angeles Clippers
2. Damian Lillard, Portland Blazers
3. Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers

The above three are pretty locked in based on their performance and contribution to winning teams. The two players that have the least odds according to this casino online are Devin Booker and Donovan Mitchell. 

1. Donovan Mitchell, Utah Jazz
2. Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns

Sure Mitchell is the default leader of a Utah Jazz team that has the league’s best record, but his numbers – though very respectable – aren’t overwhelming especially for a small market team trying to justify having two NBA All-Stars. More on that in a minute. All that said, Mitchell should make the team.

Booker is another question mark. His stats are good and if the Phoenix Suns can continue their pace over the next 5-6 games – he’ll end up locking in an All-Star roster spot.

The case against Rudy Gobert and Paul George

If it was up to my personal preferences, I wouldn’t have the next two players making the final two spots on the team. Not for any other reason than I don’t like either Rudy Gobert or Paul George.

1. Rudy Gobert, Utah Jazz
2. Paul George, Los Angeles Clippers

I think both are severely overrated; one player is just a tall, lanky player that can’t convert two points unless he’s dunking the ball (Gobert) and it’s laughable watching him show any touch around the rim when he attempts to decides to shoot a shot that isn’t a slam. And I’m not the only one that’s unimpressed with Gobert’s 11 points per game.

Yes, I fully understand that Rudy isn’t making the team for his offensive skillset, but for the defensive shadow he casts for the team with the league’s best record.

The other player (George) is super talented and has an all-star skillset with numbers that match but has clearly read too many articles about himself. That arrogance has muted any on-court improvement in the last 4-5 years and that’s been on painful display on the team(s) he’s been a leader of. At the end of the day, PG13 hasn’t accomplished anything that comes close to all the on-court preening he does. We’re not the only ones that feel that way about George either.

Honorable Mentions and Snubs

All my personal feelings and haterade considered, the two deserve to be on the 2021 NBA All-Star roster for the West over honorable mentions of Mike Conley of the Utah Jazz, Ja Morant from the Memphis Grizzlies, Christian Wood of the Houston Rockets the Blazers’ CJ McCollum (who was playing out of his mind before being injured), Brandon Ingram of the New Orleans Pelicans, Chris Paul of the Phoenix Suns, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of OKC Thunder and De’Aaron Fox of the Sacramento Kings