NBA Notebook: Will Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum make the all star team?

The NBA released its first round of fan all-star fan voting results this week and Jayson Tatum finished prominently in the first round of voting for the game, scheduled for Feb. 20 in Cleveland. Though far below the threshold needed to earn a starting spot. Jaylen Brown didn't appear in the top-10 of front court voting, in part an ode to Boston's struggles, and by extension a disengaged fan base. Brown's injuries and inconsistency haven't helped. The next round of voting results will be shared Jan. 13. 

Tatum landed fourth among eastern conference front court players, with 643,970 votes, behind Kevin Durant, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid. That slated him eighth overall among east vote-getters, and 16th in the NBA. With Embiid almost doubling Tatum's total in the east front court category. That means Brown (a 2021 all star) and Tatum are part of a crowded eastern conference reserve race. 

"That was the first time in my career I felt like I belonged in this room," said Tatum earlier this season on making his first of two All Star Games in 2020. "I was in the locker room with them, I was on that team. I think ever since then I've kind of taken the approach of, I belong in that locker room."

All-Star starters are chosen through a combined fan (50%), media (25%) and player (25%) vote, while reserves get chosen by the team head coaches, likely Billy Donovan (CHI), Mike Budenholzer (MIL) or Steve Nash (BKN) in the east, depending on which team finishes first in the standings at the break. Votes for Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson and Derrick Rose flooded the ballot box, which will likely be zeroed out by media and, you would hope, players. 

Baxter Holmes wrote a fun piece about the absurdity of fan voting years ago, with bots boosting numbers on Twitter and Jackie MacMullan hinted at a history of ballot-stuffing in an appearance on the Bill Simmons Podcast last year.

While Brown did not perform well in fan voting, he should still be in play alongside Tatum to make the game, considering his wing position, star status, appearance last year, gaudy scoring (24.2 PPG) and the unlikely candidacies of other high-polling centers like Bam Adebayo, LaMarcus Aldridge or Nikola Vucevic, who received top-10 totals. Making it will be much harder from an 18-21 squad. 

While voting doesn't directly dictate Brown or Tatum's chances, it does hint it at who fans want to see on the floor. Only Vucevic made the game after finishing outside the top-10 at his position in fan voting last year. Tacko Fall finished 20th in the east front court voting then, Tatum fourth and Brown rose to fifth in back court voting, following a far more engaged effort by Celtics fans. Kemba Walker finished 18th, Marcus Smart 24th, while Daniel Theis (34th) and Tristan Thompson (39th) even received considerable attention from the fans. 

Durant, Antetokounmpo and Embiid lead the front court this time. A tighter three-way battle is likely between Demar DeRozan, James Harden and Trae Young for the two guard spots. Young, who’s having a far better season than Harden and essentially equaled his votes, should start alongside MVP candidate DeRozan. 

That leaves us with seven spots in the east. Can Brown and Tatum squeeze in? Should either? One line of thinking usually points toward team success dictating how many all stars one should have, if any at all. Popularity, play style and, somewhere along the line, statistics come into play too.

The next slam dunk is Zach LaVine, since his head coach projects to lead the east, he’s a popular player (fourth in east back court) and his numbers line up — 26.4 PPG, 4.9 RPG and 4.2 APG on 49.7% FG and 41.4% 3PT. 

Jimmy Butler should be out there. His games played are lacking (23/39), but he’s perennially popular (fifth in front court), he’s put up enormous numbers when he’s played (23.2 PPG on 50% FG, 5.4 APG and 2.0 SPG) and his Heat have succeeded, earning him another all-star nod. His teammate Adebayo (18 games) has missed far too much time with thumb surgery. 

The Hornets deserve a nod too and have two candidates, LaMelo Ball and Miles Bridges. I’ll lean toward Ball for production and obvious stylistic reasons (19.3 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 7.8 APG, 1.7 SPG on 38% 3PT), though Bridges is no less exciting (19.5 PPG). The ball-handling, flashy passing, along with the self-explanatory popularity and flare of Ball are ready-made for the ASG. Ball finished fifth in the front court and Bridges eighth in front court. 

That leaves four sports. Jarrett Allen should make it -- 17 PPG, 10.8 RPG, 1.4 BPG on 70.5% FG -- as a second big typically plays from each conference. He’s been among the best in basketball on a brutally consistent Cavaliers team, and finished sixth in front court voting. 

Some combination of Allen’s teammate, Darius Garland, Bradley Beal, Jrue Holiday, Fred VanVleet, Brown, Bridges, Harden, Tatum or Domantas Sabonis should grab the last three spots from there. 

I’ll scratch Beal and Sabonis first. Beal had a rough start to the year and his Wizards team has capsized over the last month and change. He’s a star, scoring 24.1 PPG, but finished behind Derrick Rose and Tyler Herro in east back court voting outside the top-10. Fans aren’t that excited to see him. They aren’t trying to see Sabonis either and the Pacers have struggled all season. 

Garland is out next. I’d love to advance him (19.9 PPG, 7.3 APG, 47.6% FG, 39% 3PT). Cleveland’s as deserving of two players as the other elite east teams, but not as much as Holiday in the midst of a career season (18.4 PPG, 50% FG) or VanVleet (21.7 PPG, 6.8 APG, 40.5% 3PT), carrying the Raptors on his back into play-in tournament positioning through injuries to teammates and a mediocre roster. Holiday and VanVleet may compete for the final guard spot, opening the door for one more wing.  

Who gets that: Brown, Harden or Tatum? Harden has the popularity edge (second in guard voting), games played are negligible, except for Brown, who’s eliminated due to that. Tatum has he had the better season of the two, 25.7 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 3.9 APG on 41.8% FG, but it is close. Harden has averaged 22.3 PPG, 8.1 RPG and 9.7 APG on 41.4% FG. Brown's averaging 24.2 PPG on 45.6% FG. If Harden edges Young out for the starting lineup, Young blows the reserve away with 28.3 PPG, 9.6 APG and 45.8% FG. 

As for team success? It goes to Harden by a long shot over the Jays. Only Young and maybe Damian Lillard project to be all stars outside of the NBA Playoff picture. That's how easily Brown and Tatum could both miss the game this season, though I suspect Tatum's voting standing and reputation will slide him past Holiday and VanVleet. Holiday did not garner top-10 votes at guard. 

My East All-Stars: Young, DeRozan, Antetokounmpo, Durant, Embiid, LaVine, Ball, Tatum, VanVleet, Allen, Butler, Harden  

My West All-Stars: LeBron James, Nikola Jokic, Karl-Anthony Towns, Steph Curry, Luka Doncic, Ja Morant, Devin Booker, Chris Paul, Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Gobert, Andrew Wiggins, Paul George (or Lillard, depending on the health of both)

Honorable mention: Dejounte Murray, Shai-Gilgeous Alexander, Deandre Ayton, Jonas Valanciunas, Kristaps Porzingis, Tyrese Haliburton

Here's what else happened in the NBA this week: 

Atlanta (17-21): Two more losses where they allowed over 130 points reportedly have the Hawks emerging as a Ben Simmons suitor, according to Marc Stein. Stein wrote that a league source told him to watch out for Atlanta making such a move, which I had wrote makes some sense for both sides. Atlanta's nightmare season on defense has been well-documented in this column, as is the need to consolidate this roster. 

Philadelphia may not view John Collins, Bogdan Bogdanovic and Cam Reddish as the haul they dream of in a Simmons trade, but it might be the best they can get and give the 76ers a hefty midseason boost of athleticism, shooting and potential. For Atlanta, they could also get back Danny Green to offset salary, Simmons can play off Trae Young and be his roving protector on defense. It makes sense for both. 

Boston (18-21): They entered Friday 11th in the lottery, out of the playoff picture, after blowing a 25-point lead topped by only the Lakers' 26-point meltdown against Oklahoma City this year. The return of their starting lineup and a manageable schedule led to two mind-numbing losses to the Spurs and Knicks, after almost losing to a short-handed Magic team now at the bottom of the NBA. Ime Udoka questioned their mental toughness in New York. Put it in sharpie, they're broken. A trade of some sort is needed badly here.

Brooklyn (24-13): Kyrie Irving played for the first time this season and dazzled at times, scoring 22 points with four assists in a win over the Pacers. Then, of course, he sat at home while the Bucks pounded Brooklyn on their home court, 121-109, on Friday. James Harden played inconsistently again, Kevin Durant carried a massive load offensively again and at times their defense couldn't contain Bobby Portis. The awkwardness of Irving's away-only status is already apparent, with no end in sight. 

“I don’t want to make it simply about me and someone lessening the rules for me. I know what the consequences were," Irving said. "I still know what they are, but right now I’m just going to take it one day at a time like I said and just enjoy this time I get to play with my guys. And however it looks later in the season, then we’ll address it then.”

Charlotte (20-19): Stumbled again defensively in back-to-back losses to the Suns and Wizards after making some progress on that end in the week prior. Kelly Oubre Jr.'s intriguing season hit a high mark in a bounce-back win over the Pistons, shooting 8-for-9 from three in the fourth quarter to tie Michael Redd's 2002 record for triples in a final frame as part of the Hornets' record 24 in a game. 

Oubre has thrived on a two-year prove it contract with Charlotte, averaging 16.6 points and 1.1 steals per game on 46% shooting (38% from three) after an ill-fitting year in Golden State. It'll be interesting if the Hornets float him to try to acquire some interior, defensive play near the deadline. 

Chicago (26-10): Demar DeRozan poured in 29 points to lead the Bulls' eighth straight win over the Magic, then they made it nine in a team effort where six players scored double-figure, including Ayo Dosunmu with 18 points. He's been one of my favorite rookies, out of Illinois, shooting 52.8% from the field and 41.3% from three in spot opportunities. A 6'5" slashing guard who can defend and sets a tone for the Bulls' bench's rapid-fire attack, he quipped about advice Bradley Beal gave him he quickly used on him during Chicago's win over the Wizards. 

“He was like 'just go deliberately. Go deliberately one way and just get to your shot. Don’t think about it, just take it and drive and then get into your spot,’" Dosunmu recalled. “The next play I did it on him, and he was like, ‘I didn’t say do it on me, I said do it in the future.’"

They'll need him more without Javonte Green, who's out 2-4 weeks with a strained groin and Alex Caruso (COVID protocols), who had just neared a return from a foot injury. 

Cleveland (22-17): Rajon Rondo (COVID protocols) made his debut and helped the Cavs score a double-digit win over the Blazers with 11 points, five rebounds and three assists. Another season-ending injury, this time to Ricky Rubio, just put more on Darius Garland, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen's shoulders. They've been able to handle it, beating Indiana without Garland and playing a red-hot Memphis team close. They won't go away, and Kevin Love's even giving them periodic good games off the bench. Still, they're 2-4 over their last six. Keep an eye on them as they play their five next games out west. 

Dallas (21-18): They've won five straight huge games on a get-right stretch into the new year, with Luka Dončić returning from COVID averaging 20.3 PPG, 8.0 RPG and 11.0 APG over three wins against the Thunder, Nuggets and an emphatic shutdown of Steph Curry and the Warriors on Dirk Nowitzki's jersey retirement night. Importantly, it came after the game, so they needed a win on a risky scheduling night. Fitting for their season, Dončić sprained his right ankle late in the win and missed Friday's victory over Houston. Kristaps Porzingis and head coach Jason Kidd remained in COVID protocols. 

Denver (19-18): Beat the Rockets and Kings to stay over .500 and stay at the top of the play-in tournament picture, and hung with the Jazz behind another 20-20 Nikola Jokic game, a feat he's pulled off in three of Denver's last six games while averaging 18.3 RPG. Combine that with 25.7 PPG, 5.8 APG and 1.7 SPG and he's having one of the greatest seasons I've witnessed. He deserves way more MVP flowers. 

Detroit (7-30): Pulled off rare back-to-back wins over the Spurs and Bucks to ring in the new year, then returned back to who they are in blowout losses to the Hornets and Grizzlies. Their losses to COVID revealed the impact of Hamidou Diallo, who is averaging 16.1 PPG on 52.2% FG since becoming a starter on Dec. 12. With Cade Cunningham back and Saddiq Bey eating other minutes at the wing, it may make the team more comfortable with potentially addressing Jerami Grant's future at the trade deadline. He could be the biggest name available.

"Teams with championship aspirations are routinely calling Detroit about Grant’s services," James Edwards III wrote in The Athletic. "And while the Pistons are happy with what Grant provides both on and off the court to the organization, the franchise is currently in the business of capitalizing on its small asset pool, of which Grant takes up the most real estate."

Golden State (29-9): Klay Thompson is back for the first time since June 13, 2019. Kevin Durant was a Warrior. Kyrie was still technically a Celtic. COVID? What's that? He'll make his debut Sunday against the Cavaliers in San Francisco after tearing his ACL in those NBA Finals then his Achilles the following offseason. Steph Curry (quad) should almost certainly be back with his Splash Brother, after missing a game, likely to shake off a 2-for-19 slump from deep and 38.4% FG over his last seven. He narrated a preview of Thompson's return. 

Houston (11-29): Another rough week in what's become a second straight nightmare season, losing 3-of-4, the first of which to the Nuggets which Kevin Porter Jr. stormed out of the arena at halftime after being challenged by assistant John Lucas. Christian Wood reportedly missed a COVID testing window, which led to a first-half benching in the game and his refusal to sub into the second half. Houston suspended both players on Monday against the 76ers. Porter Jr. returned with a game-winning shot over Washington and both apologized to the team. 

Indiana (14-25): Tuned in to see Keifer Sykes, a hero from The Basketball Tournament's Syracuse alumni team winning the summer tournament last year, and Pacers early-2010s icon Lance Stephenson, 31, playing for the Pacers while nine players sit with COVID and injuries. Stephenson scored 20 points off the bench on 8-for-9 shooting against Irving and the Nets, part of Indiana's six-game losing streak. What a weird year. 

Clippers (19-20): More hopefulness that Kawhi Leonard could return this season seems to emerge every week, perhaps a healthy boost for a team that's lost 3-of-4. Why hang a dark cloud over the season by officially ruling him out? Paul George is out until at least late-January with a torn right elbow ligament, Ty Lue just returned from COVID protocol and Isaiah Hartenstein (ankle) has missed nine games. Yet they're still hanging in there in he west standings. Impressive. 

Lakers (21-19): They've won four straight and have started lighting up the scoreboard. LeBron James had averaged 34.3 PPG over his last nine games before pouring 32 points, eight rebounds and nine assist on the Hawks in a blowout win Friday. Consider him in the MVP race. Credit to Avery Bradley and Talen Horton-Tucker, turning up their scoring games recently, while Malik Monk has scored 20+ points in five of his last seven games, highlighted by 29 in the win. 

Memphis (26-14): Memphis-Chicago Finals anyone? The Grizzlies play for their eighth straight win Saturday at the Clippers as they climb the west ladder. Ja Morant (thigh) is doubtful, Steven Adams entered COVID protocol, while Kyle Anderson (back) and Desmond Bane (quad) may miss the game as well. 

Miami (24-15): Dropped west coast games against the Kings and Warriors, who deployed Draymond Green to excitedly slow and lay a key block Omer Yurtseven in a fun battle between the two. Tyler Herro got into a spat with Jusuf Nurkic, an almost unwise decision when the Blazers center swiped at his face in the final seconds in response to a shove to his back after his hard screen on Herro. The league fined both $25,000, and the Heat won the game handily. 

Milwaukee (26-15): Shook off back-to-back losses with another blowout win over the rival Nets. Giannis Antetokounmpo made 31 points look easy, spinning in the lane and even hitting a trio of jump shots. The team waived Demarcus Cousins and will evidentially look elsewhere for depth minutes at the five. Rookie Sandro Mamukelashvili gave the team decent minutes in the win, but they need more. A Robin Lopez return to fill in for his injured brother would make a ton of sense, and he won't be too hard to pry from Orlando. Darvin Ham coached the win, with Mike Budenholzer in COVID protocols. 

Minnesota (19-20): Karl-Anthony Towns returned with 36 points and 24 rebounds across a two-game sweep over the Thunder to make it three wins in a row for a Timberwolves team that had sputtered through COVID cases like Towns'. Their starting five with Towns, D'Angelo Russell, Patrick Beverley, Jarred Vanderbilt and Anthony Edwards still rates best in basketball after a stretch where they were limited, giving this woefully inconsistent group hope to lean on if they can hang on in the play-in tournament race as they should. 

New Orleans (14-25): They're in an intriguing spot as Zion Williamson spirals toward a lost season, they're technically in the play-in tournament race (1.5 GB) thanks to consistent play from Brandon Ingram, but they're clearly in a big picture position. How will they address their continuously awful defense and reset themselves for whenever Zion returns? It could lead to an interesting sale here. Would they dare eye flipping Ingram if they get a substantial offer? 

New York (19-20): They wish they could play the Celtics every game and get Evan Fournier, who scored 41 points in the Knicks' epic comeback win Friday after 64 in his previous two against Boston, shooting that well consistently. He's scored over 20% of his total points this season against his former Celtics, who he'll luckily face again for the final time this season on Saturday night. Kemba Walker, another former Celtic, missed his fourth straight game with knee soreness Thursday while Nerlens Noel is conditioning back from COVID. 

Oklahoma City (13-25): Lost their third straight game and only crossed 100 points in the third one with 105 in a blowout loss that marked a sweep against Minnesota. None of their players reached 20 points in those games, with the Thunder now last in offense behind Detroit. 

Orlando (7-32): They've lost seven straight to reach the bottom of the NBA, though a recent look at a graph showing team's injury impact this season shows most franchises clumped together, with the Magic practically off the chart. 

With Markelle Fultz and Jonathan Isaac out all season so far, first-year head coach Jamahl Mosley probably deserves a break on this campaign. Wendell Carter Jr.'s improvement alone is encouraging, with double-doubles in six of his last seven games and his 3.6 APG over that stretch having him look reminiscent of Al Horford. Plus, Franz Wagner might win rookie of the year. 

Philadelphia (22-16): They've won six straight in largely dominant fashion as they finally resemble the team that finished first in the east last year with Joel Embiid finishing No. 2 in MVP voting. Embiid has scored 30 points or more in each win, while entering Friday shooting 59% FG over that stretch. Why not include him in the MVP race again? 

Phoenix (30-8): Bounced back from their New Year's Eve debacle in Boston with three dominant wins. The Jazz, Warriors and Suns are in a league of their own according to net rating. It's going to be a fun western conference playoff race at the top. How many teams would go back in time and trade for Chris Paul, 14 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists in Thursday's win over the Clippers, if they could? Almost all? An all-time great move by the Suns changed their franchise two years ago. 

Portland (14-24): Damian Lillard is seeking further consultation on an abdominal injury that's plagued his season, with a GM search, C.J. McCollum's recent lung injury and various expiring contracts complicating the early stages of what's inevitably looking like a rebuild for one of the worst teams in the league this season. Will the Trail Blazers even end up getting much for the array of players that once projected to bring back enormous returns? The wait continues for the most interesting trade deadline team, even as it seems to be hurting them. 

Sacramento (16-25): The No. 10 seed is there for the taking, and they lose three straight games. They've been weirdly quiet since the beginning of last season, but it could potentially get loud for a bad team with multiple good players, according to The Athletic, with Sam Amick teasing interest in Ben Simmons: 

"Sources say Kings owner Vivek Ranadive has continued to make it clear to McNair that he has the green light to do whatever is necessary to meet those goals. And while the Kings would prefer to keep building around De’Aaron Fox and Tyrese Haliburton, their strong appetite to improve means that no player is off the table in terms of potential talks."

Meanwhile, Trista...eh, never mind. 

San Antonio (15-23): Losers of 5-of-6. They're a bad team right now, but when Dejounte Murray took the floor in Boston against Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, he was the best player with 22 points, nine rebounds and 12 assists. A team that didn't have a star player one year ago when last season began looks like they at least have one now. Derrick White, Keldon Johnson, Doug McDermott, Devin Vassell and Thaddeus Young are out in COVID protocol, with Lonnie Walker IV conditioning to return.

“I don't even know half their names,” Gregg Popovich quipped about his starting lineup before Spurs-76ers Friday. 

Toronto (19-17): They've won five straight and won't go away in the east playoff race. Fred VanVleet averaged 31 PPG on 43.5% high-volume shooting from three (12.4 att./game). He's an all star to me, carrying Toronto's inconsistent offense all season. Pascal Siakam's 22.6 PPG on efficient shooting inside and out is refreshing, as is OG Anunoby's scoring, picking up the slack for Gary Trent Jr. and Scottie Barnes. They now rank 12th in net rating, ahead of the Celtics, and have an obvious deadline question of how they'll handle Goran Dragic's future as he remains away from the team working out in Miami. 

Utah (28-11): Untouched by COVID all season, Joe Ingles, Rudy Gobert and Rudy Gay entered protocols late this week. I'll pass on the March, 2020 jokes and skip right to a sign of the current times. Five Jazz regulars also sat for the Toronto trip on Friday, I wonder if that's due to the risk of players testing positive becoming stranded in Canada for longer quarantines than they would in the US?

Washington (19-20): They're 23rd in net rating and worse than the Pelicans defensively since Dec. 1. That hot start feels like years ago, and their lone recent positive has been Deni Avdija helping out defensively in his second NBA season.