The All-NBA Team is arguably the most prestigious award apart from the MVP that an NBA player can receive. Some names that have been on the list in the past include Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, Oscar Robertson and more.
As an NBA player, you want your name on this list. The all-time leader in All-NBA Teams is Kobe Bryant with 15. Kobe has also been on every All-NBA team since 2005. But as we all know, Kobe Bryant missed nearly the entire season this year. That means at least one player will make it for the first time in their career.
So, who are the candidates at guard to make this year’s All-NBA Team?
Chris Paul
Jerome Miron, USA Today
Paul has made the last two All-NBA Teams and has a total of three in his career. Could this year be his fourth? Paul is averaging 19 points per game, 10.8 assists per game and 4.3 rebounds. Each of those numbers are higher than they were last season when Paul was named to the team. Now, his shooting percentage is down from 48 percent to 46 percent, but is that enough to bump him from consideration? Unlikely, but we have seen stranger things in sports. Chris Paul has to be one of the favorites to be one of the guards on this year’s All-NBA Team.
James Harden
Andrew Richardson, USA Today
Should Harden be selected for the All-NBA Team, it would be the first of his career. The Houston Rockets guard has been exceptional this season, averaging 25.4 points per game, 5.8 assists and 4.8 rebounds per contest. Not to mention he has been very good defensively averaging 1.5 steals per game. The one downfall for Harden is the fact that he is turning the ball over 3.7 times per game, the third-highest in the NBA. Amongst guards, Harden ranks 22nd in assists, first in points, and seventh in rebounds. He is deserving of the All-NBA Team, but will he be selected?
John Wall
Geoff Burke, USA Today
John Wall has not been mentioned with the best guards in the NBA, but maybe it is getting to be that time. Wall is just 23 years old, and this has been his breakout season so far. Wall is averaging 19.8 points per game, 8.7 assists per game and four rebounds per contest to go along with 1.9 steals and a much-improved 36.3 three-point percentage. Wall has not been mentioned by many to make the All-NBA Team, but take a look at the rankings. Amongst guards, he ranks ninth in points per game, fifth in assists per game, third in steals per game and 18th in rebounds. Can John Wall be a sleeper pick for the All-NBA Team?
Stephen Curry
Can Stephen Curry make the All-NBA Team? Photo via Soobum Im, USA Today Sports Images
Everywhere he has gone, Steph Curry has been an underdog. In college at Davidson he led his team as a “cinderella” in the NCAA tournament. In the NBA he is the best player on a very underrated Golden State Warriors team. Now he is being considered for the All-NBA Team. Curry has had a very strong season for Golden State, leading all point guards with 23.5 points per game.
When fans hear his name, the first thing that is associated with him is his shooting. No one in the NBA takes more three point shots than Curry, but what is incredible is the fact that he is shooting 41.8 percent from long range. If you watch some of the shots that the former Davidson star takes, that is an incredible percentage. But, Curry is not just a shooter, as this year has proven. He is also seventh in the NBA in assists per game and 17th in the league in steals per game. Can Stephen Curry prove everyone wrong once again, and make the All-NBA Team?
Photo via Jerome Miron, USA Today Sports Images