Exploring what an All-Time NBA All-Star Weekend could look like.
In honor of this past weekend's NBA All-Star weekend, I got to thinking about what an all-time all-star weekend would look like. With that in mind, I decided to put together an all-time all-star game roster, an all-time dunk contest, an all-time 3-point shooting contest, and an all-time skills competition.
This is not just a "top 24 players of all-time" ranking, it takes into account entertainment level, fandom, etc. I also tried to find a good mix between the eras throughout the history of the NBA. This is also working off the assumption that every player is somewhat in their prime when this happens (or is at least at their prime when they were in this respective conference). It also does factor in career accomplishments and legacies.
We'll start with the all-star game, using the NBA's current format of 12 players from each conference (which, sidebar, needs to be expanded). I also tried to use which conference a player did more in or played better in for players who split time between the two. It's also worth noting that I listed the benches in position order, not necessarily in order of how I would rank them or how many minutes they'd play.
All-Time Eastern Conference Starters
G - Oscar Robertson
G - Michael Jordan
F - Larry Bird
F - LeBron James
C - Will Chamberlain
Oscar Robertson, aka the "Big O", was the triple-double guy before triple-doubles were cool. He spent his entire career split between the Cincinnati Royals and the Milwaukee Bucks, but the Royals switched from the West to the East during his tenure so technically his entire career didn't happen in the East. However, he did spend the final 12 seasons of his career in the East, where he averaged 24.8 PPG, 6.9 RPG, and 9.3 APG. His first eight seasons in the East are the strongest however, as he averaged 28.9 PPG, 7.8 RPG, and 10.2 APG on 49.2% shooting in that span. He also won the 1963/64 MVP award and won the 1971 NBA title. He racked up 114 Triple-Doubles in the East.
There's not much you can say about MJ that hasn't already been said. He's in the GOAT conversation and dominated the NBA in the 1990s. He 3-peated two different times (1990-1993 and 1996-1998) and won five MVPs (with five other top 5 finishes). With the Bulls (13 seasons), Jordan averaged 31.5 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 5.4 APG, and 2.5 SPG on 50.5% shooting. While his two seasons to end his career with the Wizards were disappointing and pretty unceremonious, he still had career averages of 30.1/6.2/5.3 on 49.7% shooting.
The leader of one side of arguably the NBA's best rivalry (the Celtics vs. Lakers in the 80's), Bird is one of the most tantalizing players in NBA history. He spent his entire 13-season career in Boston, where he won 3 NBA titles and 3 MVPs. He has career averages of 24.3 PPG, 10 RPG, 6.3 APG, and 1.7 SPG on 49.6% shooting from the field and 37.6% from deep. Bird finished top-five in MVP voting each of his first nine NBA seasons.
Pretty much everything I said about MJ goes for LeBron too. He's the other guy in most people's GOAT discussions. LeBron dominated the East in the 2010s, has won four MVPs (with nine other top 5 finishes), has won four NBA titles, and went to the Finals eight years in a row. He spent the first 15 years of his career in the East (split between the Cavs and Heat) where he averaged 27.2 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 7.2 APG, and 1.6 SPG on 50.4% shooting. James is now the NBA's all-time leading scorer.
Wilt was one of the toughest players to place between the East and the West. He played 6.5 years in the East and 7.5 years in the West, split up throughout his career. However, he won all four of his MVPs in the East, so that's where I'll be putting him. In his 6.5 seasons in the East, he averaged an absurd 35.6 PPG and 26.1 RPG on 53% shooting. He also won four MVPs and finished second and fourth in his other two full seasons in the East. Wilt is the NBA's all-time leader in rebounds.