Picking All-Star Teams: How many Cavs make the cut?

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Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics. Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images /

Picking All-Star Teams: East Starters

Now we move to the Eastern Conference, where we find three of the league’s best four records. Who will make the starting group, and which MVP candidate will be pushed to the bench?

Backcourt: Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland Cavaliers

It should logically take a player time to settle in with a new team, but Donovan Mitchell has joined the Cavaliers and immediately taken flight. He’s putting up 29.5 points per game, easily a career-best, and hitting 42.4 percent of his 3-pointers. The Cavs have the league’s second-best net rating and Mitchell has easily been their best player; he should be a lock to start for the All-Star Game when the actual voting occurs as well, his fourth-straight selection.

Backcourt: Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics

Jaylen Brown of the Celtics plays at least a third of his minutes at shooting guard, and that should lead to him being eligible at both positions. That will be important in an Eastern Conference where the talent tilts to the frontcourt players; he’s probably in the 5-6 range of frontcourt players but clearly the second pick to start in the backcourt. A career-best 26.4 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists for the league’s best team should get him his All-Star selection no matter the position.

Frontcourt: Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics

Now we come to a trio of MVP candidates filling out the frontcourt and forcing a fourth to the list of reserves. 30.2 points, 8.2 rebounds and 4.1 assists for the league’s best team is a heady resume, and Tatum adds solid defense as well. Tatum has made three-straight All-Star rosters and is on track to make his fourth; the only question is if he starts given the star power in the East frontcourt.

Frontcourt: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

The Milwaukee Bucks are now atop the Eastern Conference, with Giannis Antetokounmpo handling more of the load for the Bucks than any other player in the league for their respective teams (first in usage rate). The Bucks have the league’s second-best defense and Giannis is a key part of their smothering attack. Antetokounmpo is part of the surprisingly crowded group of 30-point scorers this season, putting up 30.6 points, 11.1 rebounds and 5.3 assists.

Frontcourt: Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers

The Philadelphia center has been the runner-up in MVP voting in each of the past two seasons and is in the mix yet again, leading the league in scoring and putting up some monster nights in the process (pun intended). The 76ers have been wrecked by injuries (Embiid himself has only played in 20) but his impact when on the court has the Sixers in fifth with a robust 3.3 net rating. Embiid is fourth in the league in EPM and fourth in BPM, carrying this team on his massive shoulders.