Two Hometown Hornets Named as Reserves for 2008 NBA All-Star Game Posted Jan 31 2008 7:26PM NEW YORK, Jan. 31, 2008 – The host New Orleans Hornets are one of four teams which can claim two All-Star reserves as the NBA today announced the list of 14 players selected by the coaches as reserves for the 2008 NBA All-Star Game. The Detroit Pistons, Phoenix Suns and Washington Wizards also have two All-Star reserves in the 57th NBA All-Star Game which will be played on Sunday, Feb. 17 at New Orleans Arena. First-time All-Star selections Chris Paul and David West of New Orleans are joined by fellow first-time selection Brandon Roy of the Portland Trail Blazers as Western Conference reserves, along with Carlos Boozer of the Utah Jazz, Steve Nash and Amaré Stoudemire of the Phoenix Suns, and the Dallas Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki. The East reserves feature the Detroit Pistons’ Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton, Chris Bosh of the Toronto Raptors, Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison of the Washington Wizards, Joe Johnson of the Atlanta Hawks and the Boston Celtics’ Paul Pierce. The 14 players selected -- seven each from the Eastern and Western Conferences -- were chosen by the 30 NBA head coaches, who were asked to vote for seven players in their respective conferences -- two guards, two forwards, one center and two players regardless of position. They were not permitted to vote for players from their own team. Previously selected as starters for the East through the 2008 NBA All-Star Balloting Program presented by T-Mobile were Boston’s Kevin Garnett, Cleveland’s LeBron James, Orlando’s Dwight Howard, New Jersey’s Jason Kidd and Miami’s Dwyane Wade. Denver’s Carmelo Anthony and Allen Iverson, Houston’s Yao Ming, the Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant and San Antonio’s Tim Duncan will start for the West. The selections of Nash (Canada) and Nowitzki (Germany) along with voted-starters Duncan (U.S. Virgin Islands) and Yao (China), gives the 2008 NBA All-Star Game four international players. Should any player be unable to participate in the All-Star Game due to injury, NBA Commissioner David Stern will select the replacement. Boston head coach Doc Rivers and his coaching staff will be on the sidelines for the Eastern Conference All-Stars, as the Celtics previously clinched the best winning percentage through games of Feb. 3 among eligible Eastern Conference teams for All-Star coaching honors. The Western Conference coaching scenario has yet to be determined, with the staffs of the Dallas Mavericks (31-13, .705) and New Orleans Hornets (32-13, .711) still in contention. The coaching staff of either Dallas or New Orleans, depending on which owns the best winning percentage through games of Feb. 3, will lead the Western Conference All-Stars. All of this year's All-Star participants will join over 2,500 members of the NBA Family for the NBA Cares All-Star Day of Service on Friday, Feb. 15. The volunteers will participate in a variety of service projects at 10 different sites throughout New Orleans. The 2008 NBA All-Star uniforms were inspired by the uniqueness of New Orleans, the look and feel of the French Quarter, and the wrought iron architecture that is unique to the city. The back of the jerseys are silver for the West and gold for the East to represent the conference colors. NBA All-Star 2008 is a week-long celebration that enables fans to experience the thrill of the world’s greatest athletes playing the game they love and features a full slate of community-enhancing activities and fan festivals such as NBA All-Star Jam Session presented by adidas. The NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, Feb. 17, will air live on TNT and ESPN Radio beginning at 8 p.m. ET. The game will also be telecast in over 200 countries and broadcast on NBA.com. Fans will have the opportunity to submit their vote on NBA.com and their mobile phones and have it count towards selecting the MVP of the 57th NBA All-Star Game, as a part of the site's exclusive 2008 NBA All-Star coverage. The following lists the complete rosters for the East and West teams for the 2008 NBA All-Star Game at New Orleans Arena: 2008 EASTERN CONFERENCE ALL-STARS No. Player (Team) Pos. Ht. Wt. Birthdate College/HS/Country All-Star Selections 1 Chauncey Billups (Detroit) G 6-3 202 09/25/76 Colorado 3 4 Chris Bosh (Toronto) F/C 6-10 230 03/24/84 Georgia Tech 3 3 Caron Butler (Washington) F 6-7 228 03/13/80 Connecticut 2 5 *Kevin Garnett (Boston) F 6-11 220 05/19/76 Farragut Academy (HS) 11 32 Richard Hamilton (Detroit) G 6-7 193 02/14/78 Connecticut 3 12 *Dwight Howard (Orlando) C 6-11 265 12/08/85 SW Atlanta Christian Academy 2 23 *LeBron James (Cleveland) F 6-8 250 12/30/84 St. Vincent/St. Mary HS 4 4 Antawn Jamison (Washington) F 6-9 235 06/12/76 North Carolina 2 2 Joe Johnson (Atlanta) G 6-7 235 06/29/81 Arkansas 2 5 *Jason Kidd (New Jersey) G 6-4 210 03/23/73 California 8 34 Paul Pierce (Boston) F 6-7 235 10/13/77 Kansas 6 3 *Dwyane Wade (Miami) G 6-4 210 01/17/82 Marquette 4 Head Coach: Doc Rivers (Boston) Assistant Coaches: Armond Hill (Boston), Kevin Eastman (Boston), Clifford Ray (Boston), Tom Thibodeau (Boston) Athletic Trainer: Tim Walsh (New Jersey) 2008 WESTERN CONFERENCE ALL-STARS No. Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Birthdate College/HS/Country All-Star Selections 15 *Carmelo Anthony (Denver) F 6-8 230 05/29/84 Syracuse 2 5 Carlos Boozer (Utah) F 6-9 266 11/20/81 Duke 2 24 *Kobe Bryant (L.A. Lakers) G 6-6 205 08/23/78 Lower Merion HS 10 21 *Tim Duncan (San Antonio) F 6-11 260 04/25/76 Wake Forest 10 3 *Allen Iverson (Denver) G 6-0 165 06/07/75 Georgetown 9 11 *Yao Ming (Houston) C 7-6 310 09/12/80 China 6 13 Steve Nash (Phoenix) G 6-3 178 02/07/74 Santa Clara 6 41 Dirk Nowitzki (Dallas) F 7-0 245 06/19/78 Germany 7 3 #Chris Paul (New Orleans) G 6-0 175 05/06/85 Wake Forest 1 7 #Brandon Roy (Portland) G 6-6 211 07/23/84 Washington 1 1 Amaré Stoudemire (Phoenix) F/C 6-10 245 11/16/82 Cypress Creek HS 3 30 #David West (New Orleans) F 6-9 240 08/29/80 Xavier 1 Head Coach: TBD Assistant Coaches: TBD Athletic Trainer: Terry Kofler (New Orleans) *denotes starter #denotes first-time selection link:http://www.nba.com/allstar2008/reserves_080131.html Didn't see this posted... Please lock if did. Wow, David West? No Shaq? No Vince, no Ray Allen, no Tracy (well that was unexpected was it) and no Marion... WHERE'S B-DIDDY!!!! Ginobili, Parker, Deron... Discuss...
I applause for the selection of David West. He's finally getting the props that he deserves. Also glad to see both Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison on the team. Washington is the surprise story of the year so far and they both played a big role in that.
biggest snub is Baron Davis...but the west guards are just too good. Parker is the next most deserving. A lot of real all-stars are left off this year.
Tony Parker > Chris Paul Tony Parker > Brandon Roy Baron Davis > all guards in the NBA not named Steve Nash (or Rafer Alston ).. yes, Baron is sick, I would easily rank him as a top 5 players in the NBA today.. Dude can shoot lights out (sick signature step-back), get to the basket effortlessly, and get his teammates involved.. ALL WHILE.. playing with heart and determination.. Nelly's genius utilization + Baron's unbelievable skills turns a bunch of below average scrubs to a great Warriors team.. and who do we have? Iverson and 2 young punks.. you can't even argue in favor of the damn picks.. if you say "oh, we are awarding winners", Baron has won more than the Roy guy with a much weaker supporting cast.. if you're talking popularity, Baron has a huge following.. if you are talking entertainment, Baron is probably the most entertaining player to watch.. oh by the way, Rafer Alston was my Darkhorse allstar starter this year.. I mean, is there a more consummate professional than him in the NBA?
I think your in the minority if you think Tony Parker is better than Chris Paul. And I'd take Roy over Parker as well. Your assessment of Bdiddy is correct though. If anybody feels as if they got snubbed it's him.
You are serious? Tony Parker makes who better? NOBODY Who LEADS the team with the best record in the best conference?
I love Tony Parker but Chris Paul is on a whole different level. Here is a quick stat comparison. Tony Parker PPG 19.2 RPG 3.0 APG 6.1 SPG 0.8 BPG 0.1 FG% 0.488 FT% 0.724 3P% 0.250 MPG 34.7 Chris Paul PPG 20.8 RPG 3.9 APG 10.7 SPG 2.6 BPG 0.1 FG% 0.481 FT% 0.886 3P% 0.344 MPG 37.5 I cant think of too many point guards that have averaged almost 21 pts and 11 assists while averaging around 2.5 turnovers per game. Isiah Thomas is the only one who comes to mind.
Parker shouldn't be in. Manu, however, is #6 in PER in the entire league. He got jobbed. Just as well; they need the time off.
I would replace Boozer with Camby or even Kaman Roy? Portland's good but individual stats (which is pretty much what an All-Star has to have) made Baron Davis a no-brainer Stoudamire? Anyone but him. For a power forward, he's pretty scared of rebounding.
