Dan Gilbert wrote an e-mail to David Stern saying that all the stars are going to go to five teams and the rest of the league should just wear Washington General uniforms.
I find that comment to be negative toward the quality of players in the league.
Chris Paul going to the Lakers would not mean that LA, Boston and Miami would have all the stars. They would have some of the top stars, sure, but there are plenty of talented players in the league. The following list is all of the players that I consider "Star" quality.
NBA Stars:
1. LeBron James - James is the leagues best all-around player
2. Kobe Bryant - Bryant is aging, but will compete for NBA MVP every season
3. Kevin Durant - Durant is the leagues best scorer
4. Chris Paul - Paul is the leagues best passer
5. Dwyane Wade - Wade has a great all-around game
6. Carmelo Anthony - Anthony is one of the leagues most clutch players
7. Derrick Rose - Rose won the 2010 NBA MVP
8. Dwight Howard - Howard is the leagues most feared defender
9. Deron Williams - Williams has great leadership skills
10. Blake Griffin - Griffin is the leagues most powerful player
11. Amar'e Stoudemire - Stoudemire has plenty of offensive talent
12. Dirk Nowitzki - Nowitzki was the NBA Finals MVP
13. Monta Ellis - Ellis is one of the fastest players in the NBA
14. Kevin Love - Love is the leagues best rebounder
15. Rajon Rondo - Rondo can do everything on the court
16. Russell Westbrook - Westbrook has quickness and great court vision
17. Josh Smith - Smith is one of the best shot blockers in the league
18. Stephen Curry - Curry is one of the best 3-point shooters in the league
19. Kevin Garnett - Garnett is still a star even after all these years
20. Paul Pierce - Pierce is trying to become of the all-time greatest Celtics in history
21. Danny Granger - Granger is the Star scorer for the Pacers
22. Pau Gasol - Gasol is one of the leagues best big men
23. Rudy Gay - Gay has great athleticism
24. David Lee - Lee is great at doing the little things
25. Al Jefferson - Jefferson can get 25 and 10 every night
26. Chris Bosh - Bosh has a great all-around game
27. Steve Nash - Nash is one of the all-time greatest
28. John Wall - Wall could be No. 1 on this list after this season
29. Andre Iguodala - Iguodala is a triple-double threat every game
30. LaMarcus Aldridge - Aldridge is one of the best power forwards in the game
31. Ray Allen - Allen can still score 9 points in 3 possessions better than anyone
32. Kevin Martin - Martin is a pure shooter who deserves much more credit
33. Al Horford - Horford is a beast on the boards
34. Jason Kidd - Kidd can still get it done
35. Tim Duncan - Duncan might be old, but he's still a Star in the lone star state
36. Tony Parker - Parker has star power
37. Joe Johnson - Johnson is paid like a star
This list doesn't include fringe stars:
1. Tyreke Evans - Evans should almost be ahead of Kidd on the Star list, he's legit
2. David West - West might not be consider a star, but he has great statistics
3. Elton Brand - Brand is still close to being a star
4. Gerald Wallace - Wallace isn't as well-known, but he's a great player
5. Eric Gordon - Gordon could be a star soon
6. Paul Milsap - Milsap isn't a glamorous player, but is productive
7. Manu Ginobili - Ginobili can be brilliant at times
8. Nene Hilario - Nene is coming into his prime
9. Chauncey Billups - Billups is still one of the most clutch shooters in the game
10. Joakim Noah - Noah does the dirty work
11. Tracy McGrady - McGrady still sells a lot of jerseys
12. Andrea Bargnani - Bargnani could be a real star if he wasn't in Toronto
13. Marc Gasol - Gasol is an emerging star
14. Zach Randolph - Randolph is such a dope he prevents himself from being considered a star
15. Andrew Bogut - Bogut might be a star, he was picked No. 1 overall
16. Carlos Boozer - Boozer has flashes of stardom, needs to stay healthy
17. Andrew Bynum - Bynum could be a star if he was the featured C
18. Michael Beasley - Beasley is coming into his prime and could shine
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The NBA season is just around the corner so I thought I would post my pre-season rankings.