Damian Lillard’s all-star snub is one of the more egregious occurrences in recent memory. Despite that, I’m not sure it justifies that letter he posted on social media minutes after learning DeMarcus Cousins was given the final spot. In any event, having to decide between Damian Lillard and DeMarcus Cousins (two guys who are definitely worthy of being all-stars) did not sit well with Adam Silver and he’s open to expanding the rosters from 12 guys in each conference.
“I rely heavily on our basketball folks in terms of where the coaches’ [voting] came out. Of course there’s a fan vote for the starters and the coaches choose the reserves. DeMarcus was very high up on the coaches’ vote, so that had a strong influence on me. Ultimately I deferred to them. DeMarcus, based on his numbers, absolutely deserves to be an All-Star. Damian … his numbers are great, too. When I look at his team’s record, I want to take that into account as well. Damian is someone who has literally been a model citizen in terms of what he’s done in the community, he’s done in Portland [and] activities he’s engaged in with the league. It was essentially a tie in my mind, so I ultimately deferred to the coaches.”
Asked specifically about expanding the rosters in the respective conferences to 13 or even 15 players, Silver said: ?”I think that’s something that will get very strong consideration. I think that’s an issue that we’ll end up discussing with the Players Association. It has a direct impact on many of the player’s bonuses.
H/T: ESPN Radio
