10 potential first-time NBA All-Stars

Every year in the NBA, the fans select five starters for both the Western and Eastern Conference All-Star teams. Typically, they do a good job, but let’s just say it’s a good thing the fans don’t vote for the bench players as well.

NBA coaches have that responsibility, and what matters in a player to a coach can be far different than that of what matters to a casual fan. With that said, let’s take a look at 10 NBA players who have a chance of making their first All-Star team this February in Toronto.

1) Kawhi Leonard

The reigning NBA Defensive Player of the Year, it seems unfathomable that Kawhi Leonard is yet to make an appearance in the All-Star Game. Well, that will undoubtedly change this year. The Spurs forward has transformed into one of the best two-way players in the NBA and is without question the best player on a San Antonio team that features Tim Duncan, LaMarcus Aldridge and Tony Parker.

Leonard is averaging 20.2 points, seven rebounds, two steals and one block per game. Oh, and by the way, the 24-year-old also leads the NBA in three-point field goal percentage. Count on Leonard making his first-ever All-Star team this season.

2) Draymond Green

After his play last season, the basketball world knew Draymond Green was good, but this good? Green is the engine that makes the 36-3 Golden State Warriors play the way they do.

Sure, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson play a massive part as well, but Green’s importance to the Warriors can’t be overstated. He leads the Warriors (and all NBA forwards) in assists at 7.3 per game and is a true stretch-four, as he shoots better than 42 percent from beyond the arc.

Most importantly, however, Green is one of the most absurdly versatile players on defense the NBA has ever seen. The fourth-year player out of Michigan State can guard all five positions on the floor, making him a contender for Defensive Player on the Year. If the fans don’t vote Draymond Green into the All-Star Game, the coaches will.

3) Isaiah Thomas

He only stands five-feet, nine-inches tall, but he sure doesn’t play like it. Celtics point guard Isaiah Thomas is having a career year for a Celtics team on the rise.

He is averaging 21.6 points, 6.7 assists and two three-pointers made per game. And despite his short stature, Thomas isn’t the liability on defense you would assume he is, as the former Washington Huskie averages 1.3 steals a night as well. The little point guard is clearly the leader of a Celtics franchise that is only improving. He deserves to be an All-Star.

4) Andre Drummond

Pistons center Andre Drummond is putting up scary-good numbers this season. At just 22 years of age, he is averaging 18 points and a league-leading 15.4 rebounds per game. The former Connecticut Huskie also leads the NBA in double-doubles with 32 in 38 games played.

Did we mention Drummond is just 22 years old? The big kid out of Detroit will make his first All-Star team this season.

5) DeAndre Jordan

DeAndre Jordan is one of the most confounding players in the NBA. He’s one of the most physically gifted players in the league, a dominant rebounder and shot blocker, and yet he can’t make a shot that isn’t a dunk or layup.

Still, there’s no denying the effect Jordan has on the red-hot Clippers, and averaging 11.6 points, 13.4 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game makes him a worthy All-Star candidate. That being said, it’s unlikely the coaches will vote him in, especially when taking into account 41.2 percent shooting from the free throw line.

6) Gordon Hayward

Can Gordon Hayward finally get some attention? The small forward is the leader of a Utah Jazz team that will likely make the playoffs for the first time since 2012. Hayward is averaging 19.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.2 steals per game. Unfortunately, in a Western Conference that is loaded with talent, this likely won’t be the year Hayward finally breaks through.

7) Hassan Whiteside

Hassan Whiteside could make the jump from playing overseas in Lebanon to becoming an NBA All-Star in just a few short years. The Miami Heat center leads the NBA with an amazing 3.8 shots blocked per game and is the anchor of a Heat defense that is second-best in the NBA in points per game allowed.

Whiteside is also averaging a double-double a night, putting up 12.1 points and 11.1 rebounds. The 26-year-old could easily make his first All-Star team this season.

8) Reggie Jackson

Buried on the depth chart behind Russell Westbrook in Oklahoma City, point guard Reggie Jackson had no chance to shine. However, a midseason trade last year sent Jackson to Detroit, where he has been a stud for the Pistons.

In 38 games this season, Jackson is leading the Pistons in points and assists per game with 19.6 and 6.6, respectively. The fifth-year player out of Boston College has an outside chance of making the Eastern Conference All-Star team as a reserve.

9) Brandon Knight

Brandon Knight is the lone bright spot on a Phoenix Suns team that has been an absolute disaster this season. An All-Star snub last year with the Milwaukee Bucks, Knight continues to prove he is one of the better point guards in the NBA, averaging 19.7 points, 5.3 assists and 1.3 steals per game.

Unfortunately for Knight, very few players on teams with a record as porous as 13-27 ever make an All-Star team. Still, Knight is only 24, so his time will come eventually.

10) J.J. Redick

OK, let’s keep it real for a moment. The chances that J.J. Redick makes the Western Conference All-Star team are slim to none, but the Clippers shooting guard has a far more compelling case than you might realize.

Redick is shooting an incredible 48.1 percent from beyond the arc this season. Kyle Korver made the East All-Stars last season shooting the three-ball at about the same percentage. Along with being an improved defender, if Korver can make an All-Star team for shooting threes at such an incredible rate, the same courtesy should be applied to Redick. Like many others on this list, however, there is just too much talent in the NBA to fit just 12 players onto an All-Star roster.