Thought #1 - The starting line ups for the NBA All Star game are in and while T-Mac got edged out, answering the prayers of most fans who actually watch NBA games, Allen Iverson will be starting. Now I have been critical of both of these stars, but AI is defiantly the lesser of two evils here, being that he actually has seen game time this season. Can we stop giving props to his dedicated fan base though? I mean seriously, it's all about clicking refresh with your mouse. It's not like folks are driving out in the rain to the polls everyday or standing outside Stern's office protesting all night. Sure his fans love him, and maybe he has more fans than a lot of other players. Or maybe he has one or two fans with a lot of free time on their hands and a high speed internet connection, its hard to tell.

Thought #2 - Here are the official starters for the 2010 All Star game.

East
Dwayne Wade-G, Allen Iverson-G, Lebron James-F, Kevin Garnett-F, Dwight Howard-C.

West
Kobe Bryant-G, Steve Nash-G, Carmelo Anthony-F, Tim Duncan-F, Amare Stoudemire-C

Again it must be stressed these are the results of online fan voting, which can be done multiple times by a single user.

Now the Back Porch's NBA All Star starters.

East
Wade, Lebron, and Dwight are no brainers here, where I take issue is with the two guys who go by their initials, KG and of course AI.

Replacing AI should be Rajon Rondo. Rondo is averaging 9.6 assists a game with the next highest person in the East being Lebron who averages almost two full assists less than him. Rondo also steals the ball over 2 times a night and averaging 14 points. Not to scabby, and if you consider his assists, Rondo typically accounts for somewhere over 32 of the Celtics points on any given night. By the way, that's counting all his assists as producing two pointers, so it's a low ball figure.

Replacing KG, who full disclosure is by far one of my favorite players, should be Chris Bosh. Listen KG's impact can't truly be read on a stat line and make no mistake about it, the dude is one of the top players in the East. Problem is, Kevin's been hurt a lot this season, only played in 30 games, and truth be told, his numbers have decline quite a bit. Bosh meanwhile has played in every game and averaged 24 points, 11 boards, and 2 assists, plus a block per contest.

Wade, Rondo, Lebron, Bosh, and Howard.

West

In the West the guards are well done, Kobe is Kobe and there is no better pure point in the league right now than Nash. The forwards and center are a bit off though.

Carmelo has stepped up his game this year, but Kevin Durant's numbers are better and no other player in the league has changed the face of a franchise as much as he has this year with Oklahoma City. Therefore I'll take Durant over Melo for the first forward spot.

Tim Duncan is solid, in fact he may be the most solid player ever in the NBA. At forward though it's hard to image how Dirk Nowitzki got ignored. Dude is putting up over 25 points per game and more amazingly has yet to miss a week of games due to his jello like ankles. For this reason Dirk replaces Duncan.

Because Duncan is the picture of consistent great play, he'll replace Stoudemire as the starting center. Let's face it, Amare is always the guy we think is going to break out and dominate and never does. He's kind of like a band billed as the next great thing, produces a few sweet singles, but never quite has that entire killer album. He's an All Star, but not a stater this year.

Kobe, Nash, Durant, Dirk, and Timmy.

Thought #3 - Speaking of All Star games, it's been pretty hard to ignore the hype the NFL is placing around the moving of the Pro Bowl to the weekend prior to the Super Bowl. This is kind of like getting that sweater from your Grandma for Christmas. I mean her heart is in the right place, but truth be told it's ugly and doesn't fit right. The NFL's heart is in the right place and for most of us we mentally clock out of football watching after the Super Bowl. Its the grand finally. Problem is, a lot of the leagues best stars aren't going to play. With players dropping out on a regular basis, and the fact that players on the Super Bowl contending teams unable to play, the game will be lack luster at best. 

I was always told not to mention a problem unless I had a potential solution, so here goes.

Solution #1 - What if the Pro Bowl was turned into more of a show case for players with expiring contracts? What if the game was billed for players looking to boost their status with other teams, along of course with their pay checks. If you get guys out there who are really looking to prove themselves, chances are you will have a much more intense game and allow you and your buddies to sit around and talk about which players your team should take a run at.

Solution #2 - Make this game for the young guys. The NBA has it's annual Rookie - Sophomore game and it's usually pretty interesting. The NFL could easily take the young talent of the league, especially those who have under achieved their first couple of years, and allow them a stage to prove or re-prove themselves to the league. Again, hungry players make for more intense games.

Granted neither of these ideas are perfect, but they would give us something to talk about.

Drop your thoughts!

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