Atlanta Hawks: In a Relatively Weak Field, John Collins Should Be an All-Star

Making the All-Star case for John Collins of the Atlanta Hawks in his sophomore campaign.

John Collins of the Atlanta Hawks has already been reported as joining the Dunk Contest during All-Star weekend, but he deserves to make the All-Star team proper in his second season.

Even though sophomores are rarely afforded the opportunity to make the team unless they are tearing the league asunder, JC certainly deserves the nod – especially in an Eastern Conference field that is relatively weak compared to past seasons as well as the stacked Western Conference field.

First let’s outline who has already been announced as starters in the East:

Giannis Antetokounmpo (captain)
Kawhi Leonard
Joel Embiid
Kyrie Irving
Kemba Walker

Now, beyond that, there are multiple players who are locks to make the game:

Blake Griffin
Nikola Vucevic
Victor Oladipo
Ben Simmons
Bradley Beal

That list serves as an excellent blend of different players across multiple positions and only the 76ers are afforded two players from the same team. Of course, Oladipo will not be able to play in the game due to severely injuring his knee recently, which means that 3 more All-Star roster spots must be filled.

To me, awarding the player’s who are putting up the best numbers (no matter team situation) is the right choice. This allows the Atlanta Hawks John Collins to get in on the conversation, as his impact on the team’s ability to stay close in games is second to none on Atlanta’s roster.

Many writers, pundits and fans will likely opt to add players who are performing extraordinarily well on one of the two best teams in the conference: the Toronto Raptors and Milwaukee Bucks.

If that’s the case, arguments could be made for Khris Middleton, Eric Bledsoe, Pascal Siakam and Kyle Lowry.

It seems likely that Lowry’s consistent stretch of All-Star-level play will give him the nod over the other three players mentioned. In the end, though, wouldn’t it be more fun to see Pascal Siakam and the high-flying antics of John Collins in the All-Star game ahead of Middleton and Bledsoe?

Collins is currently 5th in the NBA among power forwards in ESPN’s offensive Real Plus/Minus and according to BBall Index’s offensive Player Impact Plus/Minus, he’s in the top 20 among all players – not just fours.