Gordon Hayward is playing like an NBA All-Star. Here’s why he might just miss the cut
Has Gordon Hayward played well enough to be an NBA All-Star? Definitely.
Will first-season Charlotte Hornets forward Gordon Hayward make the 12-player cut in the Eastern Conference? I doubt it. Here’s why:
Hayward’s resume
In his first 21 games, Hayward has done precisely what the Hornets hoped when they gave him a $120 million, four-year contract: He’s their top scorer (22.9 ppg.), an efficient shooter (50% from the field, 43% from 3-point range) and a fine passer/decision-maker (a 2-to-1 assist/turnover ratio).
Hornets coach James Borrego says Hayward “absolutely” belongs in the All-Star mix: “He’s been everything we could have imagined and more.”
Hayward says he doesn’t want individual distinctions getting in the way of the team, but you know he’d appreciate it after one previous All-Star selection with the Utah Jazz in 2017.
The NBA is finalizing plans for a scaled-down All-Star weekend in Atlanta in March. Hayward would be only the third Hornet/Bobcat selected since the NBA returned to Charlotte in 2004, joining Kemba Walker (three consecutive appearances starting in 2017) and Gerald Wallace (2010).
The question isn’t Hayward’s worthiness. It’s the selection process and whether 12 other guys in the East have shined brighter.
The Starters
Starters for each conference (two guards and three frontcourt players) are selected in a weighted vote of players (25%), media (25%) and fans (50%).
My East starter projections: Bradley Beal and James Harden as the guards and Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant as the frontcourt players.
Coaches in each conference then pick the seven reserves. Here’s how I see that hashing out, and where Hayward stacks up.
Reserve contenders
The rules say the coaches must pick two guards and three frontcourt players as reserves in each conference, plus two more reserves for each conference at any position.
In the East, the two guards figure to be some combination of Ben Simmons, Trae Young and Kyrie Irving. The top three remaining frontcourt players: Domantas Sabonis, Khris Middleton and Jayson Tatum.
That would leave the two open slots between Hayward and these guys: Zach LaVine, Jaylen Brown, Irving and Nikola Vucevic.
I could buy Hayward over Orlando’s Vucevic, and I think Hayward and LaVine is a toss-up.
But I think the Boston Celtics’ and Brooklyn Nets’ winning records will be the tiebreakers in favor of Brown and Irving.
Coaches have traditionally given players from teams with winning records the nod in close All-Star calls. Hayward has been excellent, but the Hornets have struggled to get to .500.
I think that narrow margin leaves out Hayward.
This story was originally published February 4, 2021 at 5:17 PM with the headline "Gordon Hayward is playing like an NBA All-Star. Here’s why he might just miss the cut."
