The Cleveland Cavaliers look every bit the part of a contender in the Eastern Conference. They are 20-11 with the second-best net rating in the entire NBA, two games back of the Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics. This team isn’t perfect but they are absolutely great, and hope that the Christmas season brings them even more success.
Driving that success are the team’s four tentpole stars. Donovan Mitchell has stepped into the top offensive role in his first season with the team, Darius Garland is top-5 in the league in assists, Jarrett Allen is one of the league’s best rim protectors and Evan Mobley is a defensive phenom and taking steps as a playmaker and rebounder.
Last year the Cavs had two All-Stars in Garland and Allen, and Mitchell made the team with the Utah Jazz. Can all three make the game this season? Working against them is the archaic limiting of the All-Star team to just 12 players despite a league more than twice as large as it was when those limits were set.
How many All-Star will the Cleveland Cavaliers have this season?
Let’s put meat on the bones and go around the league. As of December 19, which 24 players are in line to make the All-Star Game, and which stars will be left out? Can the Cavs get three All-Stars on the team?
Picking All-Star Teams: West starters
The star power in the NBA right now is incredible, so all of these players in line to be the Western Conference starters are also MVP candidates. This is an analysis of which players deserve these spots, not a prediction, as LeBron James is a lock to start the AS Game every season of his career.
Backcourt: Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks
Luka Doncic is shouldering a huge load for a Dallas Mavericks team that didn’t prioritize getting (or keeping) help for him this offseason. He is averaging 33 points, 8.3 rebounds and 8.7 assists per game and is in line to make his fourth All-Star game in five seasons in the league.
Backcourt: Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
Stephen Curry sticks here for now despite the shoulder injury he suffered last week. The two-time MVP is having an all-time season: 30 points per game on 50/43/91 shooting splits to go with 6.6 rebounds and 6.8 assists per game. As with Luka and the Mavericks, the Golden State Warriors are having an unsteady start to the season, but it isn’t because of Curry.
Frontcourt: Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets
Night after night Nikola Jokic shows why he is one of the most special offensive players to ever wear an NBA uniform, putting up mind-boggling stat lines and carrying the Nuggets to an 18-11 record that is just one game back of the top spot in the West. 25.2 points, 10.9 rebounds and nine assists is quite the stat line, and every advanced metric places his impact at the top of the league.
Frontcourt: Zion Williamson, New Orleans Pelicans
Zion Williamson made the All-Star Game two seasons ago and looks like a lock to make it back after missing all of last season. The New Orleans Pelicans are tied for first place in the West and are doing it with an ensemble cast of players, but it’s clear Zion is the primary driving force of their success.
Frontcourt: Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers’ only chance this season was for LeBron and Anthony Davis to be top-10 players, a tall task after two injury-plagued seasons for Davis. He was holding up his end of the bargain with dominant force, averaging 27.4 points and 12.1 rebounds, until a freak foot injury has again sidelined the big man. He will probably struggle to make the final All-Star roster given the amount of games he will miss, but he absolutely deserves recognition right now for his 25 games of excellence.
Picking All-Star Teams: West Reserves
We are five players into picking the West All-Stars and haven’t mentioned some major MVP candidates; that’s how deep the league’s stars are this year.
Backcourt: Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies
The Memphis Grizzlies look like the team to beat in the Western Conference and Ja Morant is the straw that stirs the drink, especially with Desmond Bane sidelined for much of the year. He is a force of nature attacking the paint, putting up 26.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 7.7 assists per game. He will earn his second career All-Star appearance this year.
Backcourt: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder
Even though he plays for a losing team, the Thunder’s moderate success this season should be enough to earn Shai Gilgeous-Alexander a shot at the All-Star Game roster, and his production this season should seal the deal. 31.2 points is easily a career-high and he has a number of big shots already on his ledger for the season. He is getting to the free-throw line 10 times per game and hitting a league-leading 93 percent of those shots.
Frontcourt: Lauri Markkanen, Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz were supposed to be tanking this season, but instead they are in the thick of the Western Conference playoff mix with the West’s sixth-best point differential. They owe that success to a deep collection of solid players, but Lauri Markkanen is chief among them. 22.3 points, 8.3 rebounds and 65.7 true-shooting percentage are All-Star numbers, and he should give the Cavs two former players on the All-Star rosters.
Frontcourt: Domantas Sabonis, Sacramento Kings
We don’t have to re-litigate the Kings’ trade for Sabonis to recognize that he is having a great season for a Sacramento team in fifth place in the West. His 17.7 points might seem pedestrian, but add in the 11.6 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 62.6 percent field goal percentage and his all-around offensive impact comes to the fore. He is 17th in the league in Estimated Plus-Minus and most other advanced metrics highlight the positive impact he is having on one of the league’s best offenses.
Frontcourt: LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers
Saying that LeBron James has lost a step is both true and completely missing the point, as that loss has only been marginal despite James’ age and NBA mileage. 27 points, 8.5 rebounds and 6.5 assists leading into his 38th birthday this month is wildly impressive, the latest such accolade in basketball’s most decorated career. James will ultimately be voted in as a starter, but even if not he would be worthy of a spot on the team.
Wild Card 1: Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns
The Phoenix Suns are no longer in first place in the West, but they are still a robust 18-12 with a solid point differential despite not having Jae Crowder at all this season, and missing Cameron Johnson and Chris Paul for long stretches. Booker has been having another career year, with 28 points, 4.8 rebounds and 5.8 assists.
Wild Card 2: Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers
We are now to our final spot on the All-Star team, and we haven’t mentioned Paul George, De’Aaron Fox, Anthony Edwards or Draymond Green. Jaren Jackson Jr. of the Grizzlies is having an excellent season. There are plenty of deserving candidates who will be left off the list.
Damian Lillard claims the final spot this time around, the best player on a 17-13 Portland Trail Blazers team. He has only played in 18 games, but as that total continues to go up his 28.3 points, 7.1 assists and 39.8 percent from 3-point range on a whopping 11.2 attempts per game will put him firmly in the discussion to make his seventh All-Star Game.
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.
Picking All-Star Teams: East Reserves
The East is a bit easier to fill out than the West; there we are leaving off All-NBA candidates, but there is absolutely plenty of talent to work through to make the final selections.
Backcourt: Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana Pacers
The Indiana Pacers have dipped below .500 and may be starting to fall back into the bottom-half of the Eastern Conference, but that doesn’t make their play so far less impressive. Tyrese Haliburton has been one of the league’s best point guards, averaging a league-leading 10.7 assists per game and shooting 38.5 percent from deep on 7.2 attempts per game.
Backcourt: Trae Young, Atlanta Hawks
Trae Young’s box-score stats are just as impressive as they usually are, with 27 points (12th in the league) and 9.9 assists per game (second in the league). The problem is that Young is shooting just 40.9 percent from the field, 28.8 percent from 3, and the Hawks are a bad team when he is on the court. For the season they are just 15-15 with a -1.1 net rating, and if they continue to slide down the standings Young might miss the All-Star Game altogether.
Frontcourt: Kevin Durant, Brooklyn Nets
Yes, somehow Kevin Durant is not an All-Star Game starter, and yes, he will be voted as a starter in the actual selection process. Yet here the strength of the East frontcourt places Durant fourth even if he would be in the top-5 overall; given the dramatic ride of the Brooklyn Nets this season, Durant would probably take this small ignominy in exchange for the Nets’ on-court success recently. They are now 19-12 having won six-straight games and are just three games back of the No. 1 seed. Durant has been absolutely sublime and is having another all-time season.
Frontcourt: Pascal Siakam, Toronto Raptors
The Toronto Raptors are in a freefall, losers of five-straight and 2-8 in their last 10. Their half-court offense has forgotten how to shoot and they are passing injuries around like it’s the flu. Through it all Siakam has been excellent, with 24.3 points, 8.3 rebounds and 6.8 assists per game. He has only made one All-Star Game before (despite two All-NBA seasons) and has a good chance to make one this year.
Frontcourt: Jimmy Butler, Miami Heat
Don’t look now, but the Miami Heat have won four straight to claw their way above .500. Bam Adebayo has been solid, the rest of the rotation less so, but Jimmy Butler has absolutely been their best player this season. He is 16th in the NBA in EPM, is scoring his usual 21.9 points but on improved efficiency, and is pulling in 6.8 rebounds and slinging 5.9 assists. Butler should make his seventh All-Star team assuming the Heat maintain their status around .500.
Wild Card 1: Kristaps Porzingis, Washington Wizards
Selecting the East Wild Cards was a difficult task, as the field was absolutely loaded with similarly-successful candidates. The one who rose above was Kristaps Porzingis, who has been the beacon of life inside of an injured and impotent Washington Wizards roster. He is scoring 22.4 points to go along with 8.9 rebounds and joins Anthony Davis and Joel Embiid as the only players averaging a steal and 1.5 blocks per game this season.
Wild Card 2: Darius Garland, Cleveland Cavaliers
Now for the final spot. Of the top four teams in the East only one (Boston) has two All-Stars, and each team has a deserving candidate: Jrue Holiday from the Bucks, Kyrie Irving from the Nets and Darius Garland from the Cavs. The sixth-best team, the New York Knicks, doesn’t have a single All-Star on this list – Julius Randle is having an underrated season. Bam Adebayo, Paolo Banchero and Jarrett Allen all have something to say (Allen’s defense has been incredible) and James Harden could get onto this list as he accrues more games played.
With all of that being said, Garland gets the nod here and could easily push Trae Young to get into the backcourt reserves straight up. He’s fifth in the league in assists per game, dropping 20.8 points on plus efficiency and is the second star on the team with the second-best net rating in the league. Anything could happen, but for now he gets the final spot.
That means the Cavs get two All-Stars, the second by a whisker. There is a slim path to having three All-Stars but most likely it will stay a fight for two. If the Atlanta Hawks and Toronto Raptors keep plummeting that will open things up for the Cavs to get more All-Stars, as will injury replacements. What’s clear is that the league has a ton of talent, and the Cavaliers are at the table with everyone else.