BasketballMeet our NBA all-stars

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The Denver Nuggets Carmelo Anthony picked up his fourth all-star selection in 2011. (Garrett Elwood/Getty Images)

While we're all aware of the flaws and biases of all-star voting (Yao Ming's election despite playing in only five games this season. Thanks, China), the NBA all-star game at least delivers playground-style entertainment. It, along with the Major League Baseball's all-star game are the only mid-season classics worth watching.

A defence and body-check-free NHL game with a constantly changing format? Give me a break. And don't even get me started on the NFL Pro Bowl. It's actually fitting these two games are often played the same day.

East starters (voted by fans):

LeBron James, Amar'e Stoudemire, Dwight Howard, Dwyane Wade and Derrick Rose

Considering how all star game voting works, you really can't find fault with the Eastern Conference starters. It gets more tricky however, when filling out the bench.

Forwards:

Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Chris Bosh

At age 33, Pierce shows no signs of slowing down, currently shooting higher than 50% and leading the Celts in scoring. Garnett missed a chunk of time this year but still looks good for a 14th consecutive all-star appearance.

Bosh deserves to go more than the aforementioned old dudes, even if a very reserved player like Kevin Durant referred to him as a "fake tough guy." He's improved from a slow start, and while he's not rebounding in double-digits every night, he's won the Heat a handful of games.

Centre:

Al Horford

Not that there's such a thing as a centre coming off the bench in all-star game, but for positional slotting Horford fits the bill. In 2004, Torontonian Jamaal Magloire made the all-star game by virtue of this fact, although some agree he may have been the worst NBA all-star ever. Horford however is a better player. You could make a case for Andrew Bogut here, but Horford wins out by virtue of the Hawks record.

Guards: Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen and Joe Johnson

Johnson I would choose over Raymond Felton based on his hot January.

Rondo has arguably been the best pure point guard in basketball the past two seasons. His Boston teammate Allen, like Pierce, is shooting over 50% at age 35. This would make four Celtics at the all-star game with no starters, but it's tough to argue with that: They have their conference's best record, and unlike the West, the East isn't overflowing with deserved candidates.

West starters:

Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony, Yao Ming*, Kobe Bryant, Chris Paul
*Out with injury

Centre:

Pau Gasol

Forwards:

Dirk Nowitzki, Blake Griffin, Kevin Love, Tim Duncan

Again, forget positions. With Yao out, slide up Gasol to start before his home crowd at Staples Center.

Some would argue Griffin's selection by pointing out that his celebrity stems solely from his dunking and he's not even the Clippers' leading scorer. My reaction to that is "BS." The all-star game is about the show, especially in the NBA. People don't pay to watch Billy Packer take two-handed set shots. Griffin -- for now -- is the "next one", and he should be there. You can't say much else about Love. He's a one-man show for the lowly T-Wolves, working on 33 straight games with a double-double.

Duncan I believe should be there -- while his minutes and numbers are down this year to conserve him for the playoffs, I'm a believer that veterans still playing at a high level should be honoured, and this may be his last all-star game.

Guards:

Manu Ginobili, Deron Williams and Russell Westbrook

Ginobili, in his first year as a regular starter, is putting up near-career numbers for what currently remains the best team in the league.

It tosses CanCon out the window, but I'd choose Westbrook over Steve Nash. Even though Westbrook said he didn't care about the all-star game, his teammate Durant was more honest when he said it would be an ultimate snub to pass over the L.A. native. And Durant should know -- when he was banged up earlier in the season, Westbrook carried the Thunder.

There will assuredly be some snubs out west, because there's simply more talent there. You could make a case for Tony Parker, Monta Ellis, Eric Gordon and even Zach Randolph or Kevin Martin. But Parker may or may not have broken guy code, and the others are just squeezed out by better players or bigger names.

But that's an all-star game for you.

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