Elton Brand of the Clippers is called "the horse" by his teammates, for his workhorse-like efforts on the floor. He's not flashy, but he consistently carries the load for his team, averaging 21 points, 9 boards, and two blocks per game this season. The team has underachieved thus far, so that makes his getting selected as an injury replacement for the All-Star team a long shot, and Elton knows it:
"It comes down to who's winning the most. When you get to this point, guys from the top teams get the most consideration. I've always said I thought I would have a good chance to go if we were playing well.
We didn't play the way we were capable of playing early on, that really factors in when they're picking the team, and I totally understand that. It's all about winning, so that's just the way it is when you're talking about the All-Star team."
The favorites to get the two replacement spots are Carmelo Anthony and Josh Howard. Anthony leads the league in scoring, and Howard is the second leading scorer on the league's best team. With 'Melo being curiously left off the reserve list by the coaches, it wouldn't be out of the question for the Commissioner to do the same. If that happens, Brand would, in my estimation, be next in line for that spot.
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After watching Okur almost single-handedly beat the Suns down the stretch last night, I'd have him right up there with Brand... if David Stern decides to penalise 'Melo some more.
Throw Zach Randolph's name in there too
Zach Randolph > Brand this season.
Sam, you really think Zach has been better than Brand? Sure, Zach is scoring a few more points per game, but he is shooting 46% compared to Brand's 55%. Plus, Brand is averaging 2 bpg to basically 0 bpg for Zach, not to mention Brand is overall more active on defense than Zach.