All-Star reserves

This time the fans weren't too bad. They didn't pick someone who has been out injured most of the year or who was otherwise clearly not deserving to be an NBA All-Star — as has been the case in some years past.

Sure, there are some minor quibbles — like Allen Iverson getting the start over Steve Nash. But at least Iverson was able to rally to surpass the less-deserving Tracy McGrady, who has missed 14 games due to injury.

Now it's up to the coaches to vote for the seven substitutes per side. It won't be easy, either. Deserving players will be left out in both conferences — but there will be more in the West, which is loaded with quality guards and forwards. Coaches are instructed to vote for one center, two forwards and two wildcards in their own conferences, without selecting one of their own players. The All-Star reserves will be announced on Thursday.

Should any coaches need some help (which, of course, they don't need), here's one person's opinion on who should be an All-Star next month in New Orleans:

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Starters: C — Yao Ming (Houston); F — Tim Duncan (San Antonio), Carmello Anthony (Denver); G — Kobe Bryant (Lakers), Allen Iverson (Denver)

Overview: There are 10 quality teams in the West all within a handful of games of each other. In a perfect world, all 10 of those teams should get at least one representative into the All-Star Game. The Nuggets, thanks to the fan voting, already have two. That's probably bad news for Marcus Camby, the Nuggets' center who is having an All-Star caliber year. It would be hard to justify having three All-Stars from any one team from the West.

The picks

C — Amare Stoudemire (Phoenix): Stoudemire is a better offensive player than Denver's Marcus Camby, but Camby is the superior defender. The All-Star Game is all about scoring, though, right? Plus, the Nuggets shouldn't have three of the 12 players on the roster.

F — Carlos Boozer (Utah): Boozer made his first All-Star team last year — but was unable to play due to an injury. This year the Jazz's double-double machine should actually get into the game. He certainly deserves to be an All-Star, averaging 22.5 points and 10.8 rebounds per game.

F — Dirk Nowitzki (Dallas): The 7-foot German isn't having another MVP season, but he's still the best player for one of the best teams in the West. He's averaging 22 points, more than eight rebounds and almost four assists per game for Mavericks.