LaMarcus Aldridge makes his first All-Star game and its about time. This is a guy who has averaged 19.3 and 8 for the last 4 seasons and is easily one of the NBA's most formidable scoring big men.

Luol Deng, now in his 8th season, has evolved into a very good NBA player. He's a consistent defender, scorer and rebounder. His moves and athleticism aren't jaw-dropping, but he rebounds (7.3 rpg) and scores (16.0) with consistency. Should have made the team the last two seasons.

Brandon Jennings' 2008 European project should be considered a major success and I'm surprised that more American high-school players don't follow suit. Having the best season of his career, Jennings should have been picked over Andre Iguodala.

Speaking of Iggy, he makes his first team despite having one of the worst statistical seasons of his career (13.0 ppg).

Carmelo Anthony looks to be making the Knicks worse. Something about him just isn't conducive to winning in the NBA, which is ironic considering his freshman year success at Syracuse.

Pierce and Nash are up in years, but both are playing well enough to warrant a spot. Nash leads the NBA in assist at age 37. Dirk Nowitski should not have made his 13th team. He's having an awful season shooting the ball.

Back in the 2000s, the West always had the better team. Shaq, Duncan and Garnett (playing SF) formed a difficult frontline that the East could never match, with Kobe thrown in.The power has clearly shifted to the East.

Look for LeBron to go all ego-maniacal, shoot 30 times and grab the MVP trophy.