The All-NBA First, Second and Third teams were announced last week. With many players missing the cut, social media was buzzing all week long about the so-called "snubs."
Before I take a look at snubs let's see who made the cut:
First Team: Chris Paul, James Harden, Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Joakim Noah
Second Team: Stephen Curry, Tony Parker, Blake Griffin, Kevin Love, Dwight Howard
Third Team: Goran Dragic, Damian Lillard, Paul George, LaMarcus Aldridge, Al Jefferson
Whenever an award like this is handed out, there are plenty of snubs and surprises.
Here's my top All-NBA Team snubs.
John Wall, PG, Washington Wizards
Averages: 19.3 points, 8.8 assists, 4.1 rebounds, 43% FG, 19.5 PER
Wall had a great season for the Wizards after three years of warranted and unwarranted criticism after three disappointing seasons.
Wall made his first NBA All-star team , started all 82 games, helped lead this team to their first playoff appearance since 2008 and their first playoff series win since the 2004-2005 season. If that's not enough, he also added in a Sprite Slam Dunk Championship along the way.
Statistically speaking, Wall outplayed Tony Parker, who was voted on the All-NBA second team:
Parker: 19.3 ppg, 8.8 apg, 4.1 rpg, 52 TS%, 19.5 PER, .128 WS/48
Wall: 16.7 ppg, 5.7 apg, 2.3 rpg, 55 TS%, 18.9 PER, .141 WS/48
Either way, Wall is still learning the game and at only 23 years of age, and he has tons of years left to make an All-NBA Team.
Carmelo Anthony, SF, New York Knicks
Averages: 27.4 points, 3.1 assists, 8.1 rebounds, 45% FG, 24.4 PER
After a bitter second round exit last year, the Knicks failed to make the playoffs; but you can't put the blame on Carmelo, though, as he had arguably his best season as a pro.
Melo averaged 27.4 points per game on 45.2 percent shooting from the field and 40.2 percent from 3-point land. He also had a 84.8 free throw percentage while dishing out 3.1 assists per game on the season, seemingly carrying the Knicks every game in the season.
The advanced analytics show the improvement.
Anthony’s 56.1 true shooting percentage was the best of his Knicks career and the third best of his overall career. His 50.3 effective field goal percentage was the second-best of his career.
Anthony was the only player in the league to shoot better than 40 percent from three-point range while scoring over 25 points per game. He also was the first played to average at least 27 points and eight rebounds per game since Shaquille O'Neal in 2003, according to ESPN.
Through the past few years, Melo has been killed for his efficiency but this year he showed signs of improvement in that area of the ball. Carmelo also showed signs of improvement on the defensive end as well. He has become a stable, mostly reliable defender in recent seasons.
According to Synergy Sports, Anthony only allowed .64 points per possession and a 28.6 field goal percentage while guarding isolations, good enough for 33rd best in the league. Synergy also ranks him 11th in the NBA in guarding post-ups, where he allowed just .59 PPP and a 36.4% FG.
Add that in with his career-high 8.1 rebounds per game and you can see just how effective he was this year.
You could easily put Melo on the All-NBA Team instead of Paul George or LaMarcus Aldridge.
Anthony Davis, PF, New Orleans Pelicans
Averages: 20.8 points, 2.8 Blocks , 10.0 rebounds, 51% FG, 26.5 PER After an impressive rookie season in 2012-13, Davis found a way to take his game to next level and earned his first All-Star selection.
"The Brow" averaged 20.8 points per game — good for 15th in the league — and was leading scorer for this year’s Pelicans squad as well. Davis was very efficient, getting points in the paint and off the pick-and-roll, as well as drawing fouls and getting to the line (six free throw attempts per game).
Davis was also one of the best defenders in the NBA this year. With 2.8 blocks per game, Davis led the entire NBA, and also 1.3 added in steals per game.
Davis was one of the best overall defenders in the league, and surprisingly Davis didn't make an All-Defensive team either. At just 21 years old, one could only think that his age played in account of him missing the cut on both teams.
Still, Davis is continuing to improve and will likely become a Defensive Player of the Year candidate in a few years.
Kyle Lowry, PG, Toronto Raptors
Averages: 17.9 points, 7.4 assists, 4.7 rebounds, 43% FG, 20.1 PER
Lowry had his best season as a pro this season. His shot selection is getting better, he's making wiser basketball decisions and is looking to get his teammates more involved in the offense.
Lowry was the driving force that helped make Toronto into a playoff team. Despite their first-round playoff exit, their season is in no way a failure for anyone in the organization.
Lowry is a restricted free agent, and the Raptors would love to bring him back.
“This is only the start for us and the Raptors organization,” Lowry said, via Josh Lewenberg of TSN.
Lowry’s stats were very good this year, matching up very well with guys like Damian Lillard, Goran Dragic and Tony Parker, who all made All-NBA Teams.
Lowry: 17.9 ppg, 7.4 apg, 4.1 rpg, 56 TS%, 20.1 PER
Dragic: 20.3 ppg, 5.9 apg, 3.2 rpg, 60 TS%, 21.4 PER
Parker: 19.3 ppg, 5.7 apg, 4.1 rpg, 52 TS%, 19.5 PER
