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4 Eastern Conference Players Who Will Fill the Voids in the All-Star Team This Year

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This offseason has seen several big moves, specifically in the Eastern Conference. Four of the 2017 Eastern Conference All-Stars have all moved from the East to the Western Conference, with Jimmy Butler, Paul George, and Carmelo Anthony all being traded to teams in the West while Paul Millsap signed with the Denver Nuggets. That leaves four spaces open on the East's All-Star Team for the 2017-18 season, and here are four players I think will take those spots. The only person exempt from this list is Kevin Love, who actually did make the All-Star team last year but had to pull out because of an injury and was replaced by Anthony. But with that out of the way, here are the 4 players I think will make the All-Star team this year in the Eastern Conference to replace the four who left.

Gordon Hayward

Let's start with the obvious one in the only Western Conference All-Star who moved to the Eastern Conference. Last season, Hayward made his first All-Star appearance as a member of the Utah Jazz and based on his stat line he definitely deserved it. For the season, Hayward averaged 21.9 points (among the top 30 in the league) and 5.4 rebounds per game while shooting 47% from the field and 40% from three-point range. It's also no surprise that after a season like that, Hayward was able to sign a big money deal with one of the top teams in the East this offseason, going to the Boston Celtics on a 4-year deal for 128 million dollars. Granted, his scoring numbers will likely drop as he moves to the second option behind Kyrie Irving, but I could still see him putting up a good enough season to get him back to the All-Star game this year.

Bradley Beal

Few players are as young as Bradley Beal that are such threats on offense as Bradley Beal is. As one-half of one of the strongest backcourts in the NBA, Beal had a great season as he & John Wall led the Washington Wizards to the 4th seed in the Eastern Conference. For the season, Beal averaged 23.1 points, putting him in the top 20 scorers in the league, on 48% shooting and 40% three-point shooting. In fact, out of the top 20 scorers in the league, Beal is one of only three of them that didn't make the All-Star game this year, the others being Andrew Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns. If Beal continues to score the way he does this season, I don't see any reason he couldn't make the All-Star team.

Hassan Whiteside

If there's ever been a more out-of-nowhere rise to greatness than the story of Hassan Whiteside, I'd be shocked. After years of playing as the 12th man on the Sacremento Kings and playing overseas, Whiteside signed with the Miami Heat in 2014 and suddenly, everything clicked. Whiteside went from a guy who could barely play six minutes on the Kings, one of the most consistently bad teams in the NBA, to a guy who averaged a double-double for the year before getting injured. And that wasn't a fluke, Whiteside has continued to put up great numbers on the Heat and has established himself as one of, if not the best center in the East. Last season, Whiteside averaged 17 points, a league-high 14.1 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks per game while shooting 56% from the field. It's honestly surprising that Whiteside didn't make the All-Star team this year, and hopefully, that changes this season for Whiteside.

Kristaps Porziņģis

I'm pretty sure at least 75% of New York Knicks' fans owe Kristaps Porziņģis an apology. After getting booed on draft night by the New York crowd when the Knicks picked Porziņģis with the #4 overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, which led Porziņģis to promise to change their opinion of him. He kept his promise. Porziņģis has quickly become one of the leagues best young stars and stretch bigs, drawing favorable comparisons to Dirk Nowitzki in the process. Last season, Porziņģis averaged 18.1 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 2 blocks per game while shooting 45% from the field and 36%  from three-point range. Now with Carmelo Anthony out of the picture, Porziņģis will take on the role as the leader of the New York Knicks, and if his numbers go up given his new role, I could see him heading to Los Angeles as an All-Star.

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