Josh Smith Says ‘Politics’ Keeping Him Out of All-Star Game

The All-Star reserves were announced this past Thursday, and the seemingly more so than any other player, Josh Smith is considered to have been snubbed by the coaches who made the selections. Why was he left out? In his opinion, it’s because of the behind-the-scenes political stuff that he’s not involved in, reports the AJC: “Hawks forward Josh Smith looks at the reserves voted to the Eastern Conference All-Star team and figures there must be behind-the-scenes forces that explain why some of the players made the team ahead of him. ‘You’ve got to factor in there is a lot of politics involved in the All-Star selection,’ Smith said Friday. ‘Once you get that it’s really about politics, then nothing really surprises you. I call it ‘Nothing But Associates,’ NBA. It’s all who you know.’ Coaches vote for the All-Star reserves, so there is the potential for lobbying by fellow coaches, other team personnel, and player agents. For example, Mave...