Post by John on Feb 13, 2006 11:22:32 GMT -4
From CBS Sportsline.............
Every All-Star snub has a different reaction to getting shafted. Perhaps the most candid was Washington's Gilbert Arenas, who would have missed out on an All-Star appearance had commissioner David Stern not named him to the team on Friday as a replacement for injured forward Jermaine O'Neal.
"That chip was falling off from the 2001 draft and now another chip goes on," said Arenas, who slipped all the way to the way to the second round in '01 but has blossomed in to the NBA's fourth-leading scorer this season. "You've just got to go out there and play. You can't let something like this hurt you. You know, 2001, I used that to get to this point and I'll use this to get further."
Milwaukee's Michael Redd, averaging a career-best 25.1 points per game, was snubbed twice. First the coaches left him off, now Stern.
"Gilbert Arenas has had a good year, but I think Michael being left off the All-Star team is very disappointing," Bucks coach Terry Stotts said. "He's having the best year of his career. He's leading a team that hasn't been under .500 all year. He's scored in double figures every game. He's improved every part of his game. And I think it's a shame that he's not on the team."
In the West, Carmelo Anthony was the most blatant snub. He is averaging 25.8 points per game and has been an on-court leader for a team that has persevered despite injury woes.
"Of course it was a disappointment at first, having that as one of my goals at the beginning of the season," Anthony said. "But at the end of the day you and everybody else knows how the West was."
Anthony was referring to the West's glut of great forwards -- the Clippers' Elton Brand, Minnesota's Kevin Garnett, Dallas' Dirk Nowitzki and Phoenix's Shawn Marion were all included as reserves. Memphis forward Pau Gasol, the player Anthony was competing with for a spot on the team, was chosen as a center.
The West guard choices were San Antonio's Tony Parker and Seattle's Ray Allen. Golden State's Baron Davis, New Orleans rookie Chris Paul and the Clippers' Sam Cassell were also passed over. Cassell, having a resurgent season at age 36, wasn't overly worried about missing out.
"I'm an All-Star in my mind," Cassell said. "You don't have to have somebody tell you that, to be an All-Star. It doesn't work that way."
Well, to play in the actual game, it does.
Every All-Star snub has a different reaction to getting shafted. Perhaps the most candid was Washington's Gilbert Arenas, who would have missed out on an All-Star appearance had commissioner David Stern not named him to the team on Friday as a replacement for injured forward Jermaine O'Neal.
"That chip was falling off from the 2001 draft and now another chip goes on," said Arenas, who slipped all the way to the way to the second round in '01 but has blossomed in to the NBA's fourth-leading scorer this season. "You've just got to go out there and play. You can't let something like this hurt you. You know, 2001, I used that to get to this point and I'll use this to get further."
Milwaukee's Michael Redd, averaging a career-best 25.1 points per game, was snubbed twice. First the coaches left him off, now Stern.
"Gilbert Arenas has had a good year, but I think Michael being left off the All-Star team is very disappointing," Bucks coach Terry Stotts said. "He's having the best year of his career. He's leading a team that hasn't been under .500 all year. He's scored in double figures every game. He's improved every part of his game. And I think it's a shame that he's not on the team."
In the West, Carmelo Anthony was the most blatant snub. He is averaging 25.8 points per game and has been an on-court leader for a team that has persevered despite injury woes.
"Of course it was a disappointment at first, having that as one of my goals at the beginning of the season," Anthony said. "But at the end of the day you and everybody else knows how the West was."
Anthony was referring to the West's glut of great forwards -- the Clippers' Elton Brand, Minnesota's Kevin Garnett, Dallas' Dirk Nowitzki and Phoenix's Shawn Marion were all included as reserves. Memphis forward Pau Gasol, the player Anthony was competing with for a spot on the team, was chosen as a center.
The West guard choices were San Antonio's Tony Parker and Seattle's Ray Allen. Golden State's Baron Davis, New Orleans rookie Chris Paul and the Clippers' Sam Cassell were also passed over. Cassell, having a resurgent season at age 36, wasn't overly worried about missing out.
"I'm an All-Star in my mind," Cassell said. "You don't have to have somebody tell you that, to be an All-Star. It doesn't work that way."
Well, to play in the actual game, it does.