There is no doubt that Kristaps Porzingis has failed to live up to expectations from when he was a young forward in New York. He was once expected to be an all-time great and be the face of the NBA. Now he is a stretch four that is getting robbed in the All-Star votes.
Not only did we fans fail to get Porzingis into the latest voting returns, we failed to garner enough votes in every single one. This is unacceptable for a player of his ability. Hopefully the coaches will select him as a player off the bench.
On the off chance that any NBA coach sees this, here is the case for Kristaps Porzingis to be an All-Star.
Not only is Kristaps Porzingis the main reason that the Washington Wizards are even close to treading water despite their injuries and horrible roster construction, but he is also doing so on some decent efficiency.
The arena staff in charge of keeping track of player stats are always in for a busy day when Porzingis is in town. He makes it a habit to stuff the stat sheet, putting up numbers in every major statistical category. He averages 22.2 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.5 blocks, and a steal per game.
These stats are especially impressive when remembering why the Unicorn has earned that nickname. He is a seven-foot three power forward who has all the skills of a guard. He has handles to break down a defender at the perimeter and the size to back one down in the post as well. Adding to this, he has a solid three-point shot and impressive athleticism for a player of his size and injury history.
As far as stats and abilities go, there is no doubt that Porzingis should be an All-Star this season. However, the team he plays for is a dumpster fire to put it mildly. The Washington Wizards went all in on winning and are sitting with an atrocious 19-26 record. This is not due to Porzingis as the roster is subpar and their third best player Bradley Beal has been hurt constantly this season.
Even with the poor team performance, Kristaps Porzingis should still be an All-Star this season and since we failed in the fan vote, it is now up to the coaches to make the right decision.