Eastern Conference All-Star Reserves Power Rankings
On the Outside
Derrick White has had a pretty robust campaign to make the All-Star team, with the Boston Celtics running away with the Eastern Conference's top seed. Kristaps Porzingis has also had a solid campaign to make the game as the third Celtics player. He is scoring well, albeit lower than in previous years, as he is part of the improved Celtics team.
Everyone wants to see the Celtics get a third player into the All-Star game, whether White or Porzingis. There are too many worthy players for them to break in.
Mikal Bridges is the leading scorer on a team struggling to get itself going. Bridges is still one of the most promising young scorers in the league. But the Brooklyn Nets' struggles will keep him out of the All-Star Game. He is not playing well enough to overcome a 17-27 record.
Jimmy Butler was the first player outside the starting group from the fan vote for the Eastern Conference frontcourt. But that still leaves Butler pretty far from the All-Star Game.
Some of that is by design. He knows how to pace himself through the season, and he has already missed his share of games this season.
Pascal Siakam is still a solid player and someone who can put up scoring numbers and All-Star figures. He will need some time to figure himself out with his new team in the Indiana Pacers -- although his triple-double in Thursday's win over the Philadelphia 76ers might suggest otherwise. Even though he has been playing for a losing team, the numbers are there.
Franz Wagner's All-Star campaign has been derailed by three things.
The first is his injury. Missing those nine games halted a lot of momentum, especially since he averaged 27.0 points per game in the seven games before rolling his ankle.
The second is his poor 3-point shooting. His overall lack of efficiency this season has not slowed down his scoring. But it is part of what he has struggled with all year.
The last part is the Magic's record. If Orlando were still competing and sitting in fourth, Wagner's candidacy would make a lot of sense. An 8-seed will find it challenging to get two All-Stars as reserves.
But he is closer than we might think. There is always next year.