NBA All Star Game 2014 has West as 4 Point Favorite

Carrie Stroup here with your NBA All Star Game 2014.  Place your 1^st bet here at Sportsbook.com and get your 2^nd bet free.

Sportsbook.ag Line & Total: West -4 & 292

The recently named Smoothie King Center in New Orleans hosts the 63rd annual NBA All-Star game in what should be an exciting offensive affair.

The All-Star Game is in New Orleans this season which is why it made perfect sense that Anthony Davis was chosen to play for the first time in his young career. Davis, who plays for the Pelicans, is replacing Kobe Bryant. Bryant was voted to start in what would have been his 16th straight appearance in the game but a knee injury will keep him sidelined for indefinitely. Davis, playing in his home arena, could be a dark-horse pick to win the MVP of this game.

Chris Paul, who is playing for the Western Conference in this year’s game, took home last year’s honors with 20 points, 15 assists and four steals in the West’s 143-138 victory over the East. Potentially the star of the entire evening is Damian Lillard, of the Portland Trail Blazers. Lillard, who is playing in his first ever All-Star Game, will be a part of the Dunk Contest, Three Point Shootout and Skills Competition. Lillard is one of nine members of the Western Conference team who averages over 20 PPG in a game that will definitely come down to which team is capable of putting points on the board. The team from the Eastern Conference has just four players who average over 20 PPG. Fortunately, one of those players is LeBron James. James is the most polarizing player in the NBA and has taken home the All-Star Game MVP honors twice (2006, 2008). This should be an exciting and fun game to watch, but the Eastern Conference will definitely be out to get some revenge as they have been defeated in three straight years.

This year’s Eastern Conference team features three players who will be making their debuts in this prestigious game. John Wall, DeMar DeRozan, and Paul Millsap have all had fantastic seasons to date and have earned the right to represent in the game. The East team has two of the top three scorers in the NBA in LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony. In last year’s game, Carmelo Anthony finished the contest with 26 points and 12 rebounds. LeBron James had 19 points and five assists. Dwyane Wade, who is starting for the Eastern Conference, could play limited minutes as he continues to deal with nagging injuries. Wade had a big game last year with 21 points and seven assists. Playing in his second career All-Star Game is Paul George, who got the nod as a starter this season after the fan vote. George is having a career year with 22.2 PPG and 6.4 RPG. Last season, the exciting young player had 17 points in his debut and he should bring some flare to the contest as he is one of the NBA’s best in-game dunkers. Chris Bosh, who started in last year’s game, is a reserve this season and will definitely be looking to bounce back from a poor performance in last year’s game. Bosh had just six points (3-of-9 FG) and two rebounds in 23 minutes last season, but he has been outstanding this season for the Heat and should be in for a solid game. Joakim Noah, Roy Hibbert and Joe Johnson may not be the most exciting players to watch but in a game where most players are trying to put on a show, these guys provide the toughness and winning mentality that could allow the Eastern Conference to get back into the win column.

The Western Conference team is looking to continue their dominant stretch over the East with a win on Sunday night. The team has the leading scorer in the NBA in Kevin Durant (31.5 PPG) and he will be looking to top his performance in last year’s game in which he scored 30 points (13-of-24 FG) and grabbed six rebounds. Chris Paul had 15 assists on his way to winning the MVP honors last year and he should be able to repeat his performance with an abundance of superstars playing around him. One of those players is his teammate Blake Griffin. Griffin had 19 points (9-of-11 FG) in last year’s game and has only improved as a player since then. He should also be able to provide some jaw dropping moments with his dunking ability. Stephen Curry (24.6 PPG, 9.0 APG) will be playing in his first career All-Star Game and nobody in the league is capable of getting as hot as Curry can. If he gets his stroke going, there’s no doubt that he is a serious threat to grab the MVP trophy. Also making his All-Star Game debut is Damian Lillard (20.7 PPG, 5.7 APG), who is also a deadly shooter who can make his presence felt in a hurry. His teammate, LaMarcus Aldridge, has been one of the NBA’s most dominant big men this season and will surely be out to prove that he should’ve been starting in this game. Kevin Love is a stat-sheet stuffer who will surely be the most active player on the boards in this game. James Harden, Dirk Nowitzki and Tony Parker are all no strangers to this stage and their experience and ability to cause mismatches with whoever they are going up against will make the Western Conference a difficult team to beat yet again.

- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter