Is It Really A Travesty That Jose Calderon Is Off The All-Star Ballot?
By Peter D. WalkerAre you concerned or possibly upset that Jose Calderon’s name is not on the 2008 NBA All Star Ballot?
I’m not.
To be honest, if his name was on the ballot I’d say ‘what the hell’s going on here – Jose Calderon doesn’t belong’.
If you watched the Raptors/Jazz game or listened to the FAN 590 you heard calls for Calderon to be included on the ballot. The fact that the Spanish point guard was excluded was supported by over the top comments of Chuck Swirsky who got on his soap box claiming that it was a ‘travesty’!!!
I beg to differ. The travesty would have been Jose’s inclusion, not his exclusion.
How can you justify adding the name of a point guard to the All Star ballot who only averaged 21 minutes per game last year and who is playing only 18 minutes per game this season ? It’s ludicrous. Name me a potential ‘all-star’ who sits on the bench for 60% of the game?
Is Jose a nice player? Yes. Is he improving? You bet. Does he complement TJ Ford? Absolutely. Is Jose the best back-up point guard in the NBA? No doubt. Could he start on many teams? Sure could.
Problem is that just because Jose ‘probably would’ put up great numbers if he played starter’s minutes – is no reason to put the guy on an All Star ballot.
This is a clear case of blind homerism getting in the way of common sense. I’m a diehard Raptors fan, but I’m the first to admit that Toronto has not cornered the market on all the All-Star worthy candidates. Just because you’re a Raptor does not automatically make you an All-Star candidate.
I thought prehistoric and myopic thinking like this was the exclusive domain of delusional Toronto Maple Leaf fans. Obviously I’m wrong. Apparently this same nonsensical view of our home team players' over-inflated value afflicts some Raptor fans and broadcasters, too.
Talent-wise, Jose may be a better player than some guys who appear on the ballot. Guess what? They start for their teams and Jose is still an 18 minute per game second-stringer. If you can’t be your team’s starter, then your name does not belong on an All-Star ballot.
To see how ridiculous it is, consider this. Since when does a second-string guard who generally plays against the other team's second unit deserve to have his name on an All-Star ballot?
Now this talk of making Jose a write-in candidate is utter nonsense. All it will do is take votes away from the Raptors’ starting point guard. T.J. Ford's name is on the ballot and he's in a tough fight to make the All-Star team. But with Jose in the mix, T.J. stands zero chance of being voted to the All-Star team. The Raptor vote will be split.
Now do you still want to launch a massive Jose ‘write-in’ campaign? Just be careful what you wish for because it could very well backfire.
All this dumb idea will do is take well-deserved All-Star votes away from T.J. Ford. Now that would be a 'travesty'.
I'm not exactly "mad" that Jose isn't in the ballot.
Not sure why you used MPG as an argument against having Jose on the ballot. Why does that matter in the first place? If he's producing more with less minutes than a handful of other starting PG's, then who gives a whoop how many minutes he's playing.
I'm sure the "travesty" comment was a bit of hyperbole used by Chuck, and should not be taken seriously at all. Chuck being a homer?? Never heard that one before. If we had Heinsohn, I'm sure he'd be saying the exact samething.
In response to: "If you can’t be your team’s starter, then your name does not belong on an All-Star ballot.", I find that is unfair criticism. Ford hasn't exactly been leaps and bounds better than Jose. It can be argued by plenty that Jose is superior to Jose. I've heard a plethora of PBP guys from other broadcasts expressing their favoritism towards Jose.
I'd like to write more, but I'm worried about this 3000 character limit!
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What about Barbosa, some might say he's the best PG in the league and they'd have a case. And don't say he's not a "true" PG either.
IMHO, Jose being left off the All-Star ballot is a non-issue because if he actually does have a great season, I'm sure the coaches will vote him in. Chuck was being a complete homer (surprised?) when he made those comments on air and we should all expect that of him by now.
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All I can say is that Jose has been playing phenomenally and has been ignored by the coaches. As far as Chucky, he may be a home but if the Raps are playing bad or if they get away with a foul, he calls it like it is. Other announcers will never admit that their team even made a foul.
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How can you make justify a comment like yours? Arenas is on the ballot list but has only played 8 games.
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