Steve now has a slight edge over the other point guards in the West. Considering the one of the true point guards (Jason Kidd) has switched sides and gone to the East. I don't think Marbury will pose as much of a challenge as Kidd did to Francis in head to head match-ups and Allstar recognition.
I'm not so sure Marbury isn't better than Kidd. We will have a better idea by early to mid-season. If Phoenix is still winning, I think Marbury will be a lock for the West All-Stars.
Personally Wizzy, I would have to disagree with you on that one. Now I think it will be a little harder (but he will still do it) for Francis to make the All-Star team. Marbury is a better individual player than Kidd, whereas Kidd was a team player. All-Star games looks for individual talents as opposed to team-minded players. I figure Francis would have been a lock if Kidd was still in the West because his popularity was going down after the incident with his wife. The Suns fans were starting to turn on him, that's why Colangelo traded him. As for Marbury, I think he's as good as any point guard in the league and could be as fast as Iverson. But playing with the Nets didn't give him a chance to showcase that in front of a National Audience, just look at the last All-Star game. I don't think Stockton will make it this year, as a matter of fact I know he won't. Now for Payton, if he stays in Seattle, I think Francis will beat him out because Seattle will suck this year. But if the rumors of him becoming a Timberwolve and teaming up with K.G. are true, then I think that may revive his career for a few mor years.
This year I think Marbury might beat Francis out by a hair, just because of what he did in the final minutes of last years game. Besides, everyone is waiting for a Marbury/Iverson matchup, but next year everyone will be waiting for a Francis/Iverson matchup.
I disagree. Marbury averaged the points that he did last year because he was on the nets. He was really the only day-in day-out point scorer. The suns will be a different story. I expect Marion to only get better, not to mention Hardaway, Rogers, and others are much more productive for points than say, Kenyon Martin.
Interesting. If Jordan plays at least decent(He will probably do much more), he is a lock. His mate could be anyone from Iverson to Kidd though. I would take T-Mac.
Kidd gets voted in to the AS-Game every year, granting him an automatic spot. Marbury will not be able to win over Kobe and GP. Also, Phoenix WILL not be better with Marbury than Kidd, at least for next year. Kidd's ability to rebound and play perimeter defense allowed the Suns to have a pretty damn good defense. Arguably, Kidd meant as much to the Suns as any player in the league. Shawn Marion will suffer from not having Kidd setting him up with easy dunks and fastbreak points. Kidd's passing skills, enabled the Suns' offense to have tremendous ball movement, enabling open shots and layups. Marbury and Penny (if healthy), will be holding on to the ball for 20 of the 24 seconds. Playing defense against the Suns will be very easy in the sense that you know who will shoot the ball. The Suns will look a lot like the Rockets of last year. Francis is a better player than Marbury. If anyone thinks otherwise, he/she is probably a relative of Marbury's. As flashy as Marbury is, he didn't get all that much pub playing just outside of NY. Phoenix is a hick town compared to the NJ/NYC area. Marbury will find out in the West, that he won't be able to drop layups over scrub big men, like he did in the East. With that being said, look for Kidd to dominate the game even more. The fact that he averages 7-8 rebounds a game in the West, means he could grab close to 10 a game in the East.
You guys giving up on Payton? Because fans vote, Gary will start. That's not to say Steve won't outplay everyone and deserve it. I think his assists will go up significantly with Rice and the fact it looks like they will have to outscore teams to win means he may even score more...
Come on! The All-Star starters are selected based on popularity. While I think Steve is one of the 2 best point guards in the West, he just might not make it. People other than Rockets fans are still considering Steve a bad boy.
Come on guys, remember, the starters are picked by popularity and fans. But the reserves are picked by the coaching staff and I'm pretty sure the West coaches will think that Steve deserves a spot on the roster, guaranteed.
I just want to see another Vinsanity/Wink showdown in the dunk contest this year. Hasn't been that interesting since Jordan and the Human Highlight Film.
This may be the year Francis makes it, but I think Payton is done for sure. I agree that at one time in his career he was one of the most all around players in the league, but with a losing team on his hands I doubt that the coaches will pick him as a reserve. Talent level as well as their team's winning % count towards who gets picked by the coaches as reserve, which is why Payton and Francis both may be in trouble this year.
Bah. Marbury got good stats on a crappy team - Payton gets his stats at the expense of the team. I take NEITHER over Francis.
