A closer look at Reggie Jackson’s all-star chances
Reggie Jackson and the Detroit Pistons are off to a great start this season, but has he done enough to earn all-star honors?
Reggie Jackson’s chances of making the Eastern Conference all-star team are worse than fellow Piston Andre Drummond, but I still like his chances.
With the NBA’s all-star voting reformatted to “frontcourt players” and “backcourt players” instead of by position, it’s a little harder to predict who’s in and who’s out, because Jackson would also be competing against Eastern Conference shooting guards.
The best estimation we can get is by looking at last year’s roster–because it’s the most relevant–and then taking a look at all-star roster regulations.
Last season, six of the 13 players that made the all-star game were backcourt players. Four point guards made the team, while the other two spots were shooting guards.
Last season’s Eastern Conference All-Star guards:
John Wall
Kyle Lowry
Kyrie Irving
Jeff Teague
Kyle Korver
Dwyane Wade
Taking a look at last season’s roster, Jackson has an obvious advantage over both Jeff Teague, Kyle Korver, and Kyrie Irving.
Both the Pistons and Atlanta Hawks are similar in records (they are both 14-11 as of today), but Jackson averages more points and rebounds than Teague and Korver, while averaging the same number of assists as Teague and more than Korver.
As for Irving, he has yet to even play a game this season which should make it extremely difficult for him to leapfrog Jackson.
The NBA all-star guidelines require each all-star team to have two backcourt players and three frontcourt players starting.
After that, there must be three frontcourt players, two backcourt players, and then two wild cards to round out the all-star roster.
That means the maximum number of backcourt players is six with a minimum of four, and the maximum number of frontcourt players is eight with a minimum of six.
If things stay about the same over the next two months, Jackson’s stiffest competition would be John Wall of the Washington Wizards, Isaiah Thomas of the Boston Celtics, Dwyane Wade of the Miami Heat, Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan of the Toronto Raptors, and Jimmy Butler of the Chicago Bulls.
The only real lock right now is Kyle Lowery, who is statistically as good as any guard in almost every category. He also figures to receive an entire nation’s worth of votes playing for the Raptors.
That leaves a minimum of three roster spots, with a maximum of five.
The table above illustrates just how tight of a race this is going to be of the remaining candidates.
While there is still a lot of basketball to be played, its evident that Jackson has as good of a chance at making the all-star team any point guard or shooting guard in the Eastern Conference.
As of right now, I think we can firmly put Jackson ahead of DeRozan, because he grades out higher in points, rebounds, assists, and steals per 36 minutes, but with how close all of these players are statistically, each player’s team record figures to play a big factor in deciding who ends up on the final roster come February.
Jackson could also get the nod from coaches over John Wall if the Pistons continue to win and the Wizards remain underwhelming–even though Wall is a spectacular talent.
It’s also possible that Jackson finds his way in over Wade, but I wouldn’t bet on that happening with Wade having made 11 straight all-star games.
The other factor we need to consider is whether or not six guards (or seven if you count Butler), would make the Eastern Conference all-star game again this season.
Last season’s Eastern Conference All-Star forwards:
Carmelo Anthony
LeBron James
Pau Gasol
Paul Millsap
Chris Bosh
Al Horford
Jimmy Butler (is listed as a guard and a forward)
I think Horford and Gasol are usurped by Andre Drummond and Paul George. Jimmy Butler likely makes it on the team as a guard, with Kevin Love taking his place as a forward. If that happens, there will be the same number of forwards this season at seven.
If that’s the case, Jackson could make the 2016 Eastern Conference all-star squad as one of the last guards (likely over one of Isaiah Thomas or John Wall), or as a wild card over Gasol.
Lock:
Kyle Lowry
Estimated Reserves:
John Wall
Dwyane Wade
Isaiah Thomas
Reggie Jackson
Jimmy Butler
Odd man out:
DeMar DeRozan
Jackson may not be a lock for the all-star game this season, but he stands a really good chance of making the team if the Pistons can continue to win.
The Pistons will have a chance to start making some separation with six of the next seven games against Eastern Conference opponents.