10 Feet High

The NBA All-Star voting has had it share of injustices for a while, and the recent influx of gifted international players has contributed even further. As long as the fans have the majority of power, injustices will continue.

Which leads me to my point. There is a fracture in the system that must be dealt with to insure the integrity of the game.

Due to a broken foot suffered in the 2009 Playoffs, Yao Ming has not appeared in one game this season. When healthy, he is unquestionably one of the game’s greatest big men. His versatility and size make him almost unguardable and often unstoppable, both in and out of the paint. But ... this is when he’s actually playing.

Yao's injury though, hasn't stopped Chinese fans from voting for him. Hardly the case really. Amidst reports showing that Chinese fans cast ballots at a far higher rate than American fans - passion, desire, national pride as reasons maybe? - Yao will be voted in as an All-Star, and perhaps the leading vote-getter at that. What a mess.

Even worse is the “same-team” treatment many Chinese voters have given fellow Rocket, Tracy McGrady. Despite appearing in just six games this year and leaving the team, McGrady is also near the top of votes, and oddly enough, he too is on pace to start in the All-Star Game. One of the least productive and by far most overpaid players in the NBA, he is unfortunately ahead real All-Stars, such as Blazers guard Brandon Roy. Yeah, that makes sense.

McGrady and Kevin Durant aren’t listed at the same position, but it should be noted that Durant has less votes. KD is turning into a bonafide superstar, while McGrady is a bonafide gimp, who walks out on his teammates when he's not happy.

Mind-bottling isn’t it? (Thanks, Will Ferrell).

True, T-Mac is a marquee name, but followers of the game know he hasn’t been an All-Star caliber player since 2007-08, when he put up nearly 22 points and five rebounds.

Pretty soon, Brazilians will vote in Anderson Varejao as an All-Star, because he is a decent enough player who happens to play with LeBron James. Okay, that may be a stretch, but you get the point.

In the first ballot released, 206 product and Rockets point guard Aaron Brooks (a fine player in his own right), had more votes than Deron Williams, who may very well be the best point in the league.

Enough is enough!



(Something is fundamentally wrong if this is a picture we see in Jerry Jones' masterpiece come February)


Allen Iverson, the enigmatic and troubled guard who quit on Memphis after just three games of little playing time, is second in voting among Eastern Conference guards. No, you did not read that incorrectly.

Not only has Iverson played in just 15 games this season, he hasn’t even played well. As a 76er, he’s averaging a career low 14.7 points on just 45 percent shooting. All of this comes on an incompetent, cellar-dwelling team.

I usually don’t agree with the outspoken Charles Barkley, but Chuck made a great point recently on TNT when he said that fans shouldn’t be allowed to vote. He may have taken his statements a little too far, but the message is loud and clear.

Critics will say the All-Star game is merely for the fans. It’s just an exhibition after all, with high-flying dunks, ohhs and ahhs, and mostly, a giant popularity contest. To an extent this is true, but what we have to understand is the significance of making the All-Star team.

For the players not voted in, especially the borderline guys that the McGrady and Iverson selections are taking (assuming they accept their bids), it becomes a matter of contracts and the validation of careers.

I just hope these "hoops aficionados" can come to realize this before voting in former greats or injured stars based on name merit irrational love. Think about the 29-year-old forward having a career year, playing for his last big contract. An All-Star selection means a great deal more to him than it does to Tracy McGrady, who hasn’t earned such an honor even though his salary demands otherwise.

When it comes to All-Star voting, there is a way both the league and the fan can win.

The current system allows fans to pick the starting line-up, and the coaches pick their seven reserves. (In the case of injury, the league then chooses a substitute). The NFL – as it often does – has gotten it right. Its “one-third” formula divides the vote equally and fairly amongst fans, players and coaches, and has worked very well since its inception in 1996.

Everybody agrees that an All-Star game is about the best players on the brightest stage. Unless we alter the currently flawed format in the NBA, this will never be the case.

I suppose Shaq, who is second on the East among centers, has a lifetime achievement award. He hasn’t averaged a double-double since 2004-05 but automatically gets the All-Star nod. (He'd better lead the opening dance sequence again, or else.) Look, I love him, but the guy’s game has fallen faster than Clinton’s Q rating after the Monica Lewinsky saga.

How can we have an All-Star game that doesn’t feature the likes of Chris Bosh or Steve Nash - two legitimate MVP candidates? That may happen this season. Either way, it shouldn’t even be a question whether or not they are selected, which speaks to the immensely defective system currently in place.

The bottom line is that the voting criteria desperately needs to be fixed.

The coaches and players are the biggest barometer of talent and success, not the fans. They see intricacies nobody else does. They know who the real All-Stars are, the guys who come to play every night.

By implementing the “one-third” format to supplant the currently flawed system, the integrity of this cherished event will be restored. We’re not trying to solve world hunger here. This is something that we can easily repair, with a slight rule change.

If the ultimate reward is to bring us the best players in one game, then this is the solution we need.

Real fans know this much.