After just witnessing a rather entertaining All-Star game, it was not hard to notice that the Sixers were poorly represented. Other than Jahlil Okafor in the Rising Star game, the Sixers were basically left out to watch All Star weekend from their couches. There is, however, hope for some young Sixers. Let’s examine the likelihood of each player becoming an All Star.
Jahlil Okafor
It is hard to imagine, with all the promise and hype surrounding the young center, that he fails to reach at least one All Star game. At worst, Okafor will carve out a nice 20+ PPG, 8+RPG year, and that is more than enough to push him in.
Likelihood: 95%
Nerlens Noel
Unfortunately, fans do not respect the defensive big man’s game, as seen by the recent snub of DeAndre Jordan. That does not bode well for Noel’s future All Star hopes. If somehow Noel develops a plus outside jumper, and continues to dominate defensively he might be able to sneak in to at least one All Star game.
Likelihood: 35%
Joel Embiid
First he needs to get onto the court, but once (if) he does, Embiid has immense upside. The comparisons to Hakeem were no joke coming out of Kansas, and many people actually thought he was the best player in the Andrew Wiggins/Jabari Parker draft. If Embiid realizes his potential he could be a perennial All Star. Though due to the fact that there are way too many ifs, his chances cannot be too great. But again IF he stays healthy and IF he can develop nicely, the Sixers don’t just have an All Star but perhaps a superstar.
Likelihood: 30%
Dario Saric
Sure he is not on the team yet, but after watching some games of him over in Europe, Sixers fans have to be somewhat excited by the young Croatian. He has impressive ball handling and vision for a player of his size (6’10”, 220lbs) and he could carve out a nice niche in the NBA. Maybe just maybe, the niche is big enough for fans to notice.
Likelihood: 15%
Ish Smith
Even when Smith was playing really well for the Sixers, he still was not putting up All Star numbers. There is however a possibility that as he continues to gel with the young big men, his game could improve enough to produce fringe All Star numbers. I mean hey, Jrue Holiday made the game with 18 ppg and 8 apg, there’s a small chance Smith could replicate those numbers.
Likelihood: 8%
Nik Stauskas
Stauskas has an interesting offensive game, and a solid amount of upside. His ceiling is around a poor man’s J.J. Reddick and even the excellent sharpshooter from Duke has never been an All-Star. Unless the play of guards around the league falls off and Stauskas gets really hot for the beginning of a season, it’s highly unlikely he plays during All Star weekend.
Likelihood: 5%
Jerami Grant
Like Stauskas, Grant’s potential is intriguing. He is already developing into a stud defender, and he is slowly working on his offensive game. Again it is tough for players to get recognized for their defense, and Grant’s offense is still below average, so any chance that he is an All Star is very slim to none.
Likelihood: 3%
Robert Covington
Covington’s combination of size and shooting ability is pretty rare but he is relatively streaky so his field goal percentage will never really impress. Due to the aforementioned combination, Covington has a shot to take his game to the next level, but that level still may not be All Star worthy.
Likelihood: 3%
T.J. McConnell
Props to the hardworking McConnell on having a pretty solid rookie season. He has shown some promise and has a chance to develop into a steady bench player, which would be great for an undrafted player such as McConnell. He has little chance however, to produce enough to even be considered for an All Star game. Especially considering where the Sixers are likely to draft which could see his minutes drop massively.
Likelihood: 1%
Richaun Holmes
I actually wanted to put the second round pick higher on this list but after further thought, Holmes is where he belongs. He has shown the ability to be a consistent effort player but “effort players” do not make All Star teams. If somehow Holmes develops way past his ceiling, he will probably never be better than a guy like Kenneth Faried and that is still not even close to All Star status.
Likelihood: .5%
0% Chance
Carl Landry
Elton Brand
Kendall Marshall
JaKarr Sampson
Hollis Thompson
Isaiah Canaan
photo credit:Bill Streicher/USA Today Sports
