The All-Star Game is a glorious chance for fans to see the best and brightest stars of the NBA showcase their skills with and against one another. But having all the best and most deserving players on the court every year is never a guarantee.
The flaws of fan voting and biases in the coaches’ vote have resulted in some head-scratching “All-Star” selections over the years. Below we give you our countdown of the top five worst NBA All-Stars.
[sc:NBA240banner ]Jamaal Magloire averaged a borderline double-double (12.1 PPG and 9.4 RPG) while playing for the New Orleans Hornets in the 2003-2004 season. Despite his lackluster stat line, he found himself in the East’s All-Star roster because all of the league’s premier big men at the time were playing on the West Coast.
The West had the likes of Kevin Garnett, Shaquille O’Neal and Tim Duncan, who all made Magloire’s numbers pale in comparison.
4. Kobe Bryant, 2014
Kobe Bryant didn’t step onto the court until a December 8 game against Toronto in the 2013-2014 season. He played in just six games, averaging 13.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.2 steals before the All-Star Game. The Lakers weren’t particularly good as they went just 2-4 with the Mamba donning the purple and gold.
Due to his lackluster performance and the amount he’d been out with injuries, Bryant urged the fans to vote for younger up-and-coming players in the league instead of him for an All-Star spot. Despite his wishes, he finished second in the Western Conference voting for guards, behind Stephen Curry.
3. B.J. Armstrong, 1994
In the ‘90s, everybody was sipping the Chicago Kool Aid due to the three-straight NBA titles (1991, 1992 and 1993) brought around by Michael Jordan. His Airness “retired” prior to the 1993-1994 season due to his father’s murder. The Chicago fans needed someone new to look up to, and they chose another Bulls guard in B.J. Armstrong.
Armstrong finished third in the fan voting, astonishingly above Bulls point guard Scottie Pippen. There was no question, though, that Pippen’s averages of 22 points, 8.7 boards and 5.6 assists looked more like All-Star-caliber numbers than Armstrong’s 15.8-2.3-4 stat line that season.
2. Yao Ming, 2011
The towering Rockets center Yao Ming played in only five games in the 2010-2011 season. He averaged 10.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.6 blocks over those five games. Despite missing plenty of action, Ming was still voted into the All-Star roster by the fans, most of whom were from his native country of China.
What makes Ming’s All-Star spot even more appalling was Kevin Love’s All-Star snub. By comparison, Love had a monster 2010-2011 campaign as he averaged 21 points and 15.5 boards per game prior to the 2011 All-Star Game.
1. Allen Iverson, 2010
Allen Iverson was selected for the 2010 All-Star game despite averaging just 14.4 points, 2.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game. His lackluster numbers weren’t the only things that made his selection baffling. Iverson was waived by the Memphis Grizzlies after a dispute about his role as a bench player. Months later, he was released by the Philadelphia 76ers after they had picked him up as a free agent.
By the time the 2010 All-Star Game tipped-off, Iverson had already left the NBA indefinitely for personal reasons. But he still finished No. 2 among the East’s guards behind only Dwyane Wade.
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