Granger was red hot from the field, going 12-for-19.  He hit 3-of-5 from behind the arc and 10-of-11 from the free throw line.  He finished with 37 points on just 19 shots, an impressive display of scoring efficiency.  He was also able to snag 7 rebounds, block a shot, create a steal, and dish out 2 assists.  Granger was even able to convert on a four point play in the game.  He caught fire in the second half which was the difference for his team.

The Pacers have won 3 of their last 4 games and Granger is the unquestioned star on this team that has now run its record to 9-7 and is looking to compete for a playoff spot this season.  He secured the victory for his team last night and also the “Stat Line of the Night”.

Danny Granger scored 33 points in the game, but only had 8 of those in the first half.  He heated up in the second half though, scoring 25 of his team’s 55 points.  He shot 13-20 on the game, nailing 4 of 7 threes and going 3 of 4 from the free throw line.  He has been an efficient scorer all season, and his scoring has even surged of late.  He also had 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals to go with it..

Granger is averaging over 31 points a game in his last 7 games, but its far too little too late for the Pacers.  While they don’t have very many things to be positive about going forward, they do have the young Granger to build around.  Granger’s abilities open up the court for his teammates and if the Pacers can lure or draft one more good player, there’s no reason they can’t be a playoff team in the east in the near future.  In the meantime, Granger wins “Stat Line of the Night”.

All 14 of these players definitely deserved it and have had good seasons up to this point. Unfortunately there is only room for 12 people on the All-Star roster, so there were a good amount of players who were snubbed this time around. Usually there is a few, but I feel that for the first time in a while there are so many players who could really have been on this reserve roster.

In the West, some players who could have deserved it also are Kevin Durant, Paul Millsap, Steve Nash, Carmelo Anthony, and Al Jefferson. The 2 people I feel out of these 6 that really should have gotten it over others are Kevin Durant and Paul Millsap. Durant is averaging 24.8 points per game, which is good enough for sixth in the NBA. Paul Millsap has numbers that are definitely All-Star worthy, but the fact that David West has Chris Paul as a point guard is what gets him on the team. With a player like that on your team, you become better and better day by day, and David West has taken full advantage of Paul.

I think the reason Durant didn’t get the spot was because of team record. The seven reserves all play on teams with winning records, and Oklahoma City is far from that at 11-35. The West was pretty spot on with their All-Stars, and the picks that were borderline didn’t bother me.

The East is a pretty good squad, and there aren’t that many snubs. The only possible others who had an outside shot were David Lee, Ray Allen, and Mo Williams. These 3 players have made great contributions to their respective teams so far this year, and all of them will play a big role on their NBA Finals run (in Allen and Williams’ case) or a playoff run (in Lee’s case). While all 7 East reserves definitely deserved it, I think this was the time for David Lee. He is averaging 16 points and 11 rebounds on an improving Knick team, and along with Chris Duhon, is a huge leader. Lee is having a great year, but since it is early in his career, it isn’t a total snub, as he has a bright future and will eventually earn a spot.

I wish the best of luck to all the reserves and the starters in the game, and for the end of this article I’m going to make my All-Star pick: East 141, West 135.

Total Pro Sports- Let’s face it. The All-Star game is a popularity contest for the starting five, and even partially for the coaches who pick the reserves (because we know all the coaches play favorites as well). Some guys will get snubbed, and some guys will get the nod even though they don’t fully deserve it. Earlier this week, the starters were announced. I’m going to focus on the East, because that is where the focus of this article, David Lee, plays.

The starters were: Allen Iverson, Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Kevin Garnett, and Dwight Howard. All five of these guys are definitely deserving of making the All-Star team, and most of them deserve to start (Iverson in my opinion should be a reserve and either Devin Harris or  Jameer Nelson should’ve been the starter).

There are fifteen players on the roster, so we have ten reserves. Let’s say we do it by two at each position (these aren’t my best answers, as I haven’t done my full research): Harris and Nelson at point, Joe Johnson and Ray Allen at shooting guard, Paul Pierce and Danny Granger at small forward, Chris Bosh and Rashard Lewis at power forward, and Emeka Okafor and DAVID LEE at center. Yes, David Lee should make the All-Star team. Besides Howard, there is no better center in the Eastern Conference than him. 15.5 points per game, 11.5 rebounds per game, 2 assists per game, 1 steals per game, .5 blocks per game. All of those numbers are totally solid, and he is producing on a struggling Knick team that is 18-24 and 10^th in the Eastern Conference.

David Lee has always been producing, whether it is early in his career on the bench, or now as the starting center. As a huge Knick fan, it hurt to see Lee be on the bench for the majority of his early career, when he was better than most of the big men that started (cough Eddy Curry cough). David Lee still had trouble getting into the starting rotation this year, but thanks to his great play in the preseason and in the beginning of the year, Coach D’Antoni has fallen in love with this wonderful big man. If you really care coaches, vote for David Lee. He deserves it, and can really help the Eastern Conference win it this year, which needs this win to tie the series over this decade.