Dale Robertson

Of course Chris Paul is an All-Star. Anybody knows that. His not being named an All-Star can add more fuel to the #Rockets fire. Being aggrieved is good for them.

It’s hard to fathom how a team with the NBA’s second-best record could have only one All-Star, but that’s the case. Paul’s missing so many games with injuries clearly hurt him, but Bleacher Report’s metrics — sorry, too complicated and space-gobbling to explain here — show that Paul’s limited court time actually makes his performance “all the more impressive,” writes Adam Fromal for the website: “Two-thirds of our calculation are based on volume-oriented stats and the league’s resident Point God (not a typo) still managed to overcome his availability limitations by finishing with the No. 16 overall score, ahead of 11 players with the coveted All-Star designation. The 32-year-old has been a nightmare to defend, especially when working alongside James Harden. His quick-trigger shooting is a new development in a career filled with patient, probing play, and he’s using those decisive actions to get even more open looks (one of which drove a dagger into the Heat’s heart Monday night).” Paul was rated the third most “dissed” player behind only Nikola Jokic of the Nuggets and Andre Drummond of the Pistons, and Rockets teammate Clint Capela came in sixth on the list. Not important, though. Paul is already a nine-time All-Star — been there, done that — and Capela will make it into the game eventually, based on the leaps-and-bounds progress he’s making. Both would agree playing well into June would provide sufficient compensation for being snubbed in February.