The NBA has announced the reserves of the All-Star teams that will compete in the February 16 game in New Orleans, with the Houston Rockets and Portland Trail Blazers getting the most selections with two players and the Indiana Pacers getting just one despite having the best record at this point of the season.
Center Dwight Howard and guard James Harden of the Rockets will be joining the Blazers' one-two punch of LaMarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard while the Indiana Pacers will have center Roy Hibbert joining starter Paul George. Lillard will be in his first All-Star game after a breakthrough rookie season that saw him cop the league's Rookie of the Year award.
Others voted as reserves are Clippers superstar Chris Paul, Dallas Mavericks veteran star Dirk Nowitzki, and San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker.
Three first-time All-Stars will join Hibbert in the East bench. They are Toronto Raptors swingman DeMar DeRozan, Washington Wizards guard John Wall and Atlanta Hawks bigman Paul Millsap. Others voted by head coaches in the line-up are Miami Heat forward Chris Bosh, Brooklyn Nets guard Joe Johnson, and Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah.
Noah, who has assumed the leadership role in Chicago following the injury of superstar Derrick Rose and trade of forward Luol Deng, expressed happiness over his selection. He told ESPN.com: "I'm honored to be selected to play in the All-Star Game, play against the best players in the world. It's very humbling. I'm happy the hard work is paying off. Even though it's not my priority, it's still a pretty good achievement. I'm proud of it."
Wall, who was signed to a $80 million contract extension by the Wizards this season, was also happy that coaches selected him. "I am very proud to represent the Wizards franchise and the city of Washington as an All-Star and to share this honor with the fans who have supported me and stuck by me since I arrived here," he said.
Some of the notable snubs this year include Lance Stephenson of the league-leading Indiana Pacers, Goran Dragic of the surprising Phoenix Suns, DeMarcus Cousins of the Sacramento Kings and Anthony Davis of the New Orleans Pelicans.
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