That said, a significant proportion of fans will only vote for superstars who “deserve it.”
Last Sunday, I posted a poll to ask if you, the fans, would vote for Washington Wizards players to the NBA All-Star Game just because they play for the Wizards. Only 58 people responded, which I am disappointed about. But I think the results are indicative of reality.
The majority of you (about 64 percent) would vote for Wizards players to the All-Star Game. But 36 percent of you (21 votes) are what I would call absolute “basketball purists” or what Monumental Sports & Entertainment would describe as “Grinches.” In other words, you are only voting for players who are performing at a high level for the best teams in the NBA.
Here are the results of our poll last weekend on how you select your All-Stars. pic.twitter.com/oVrwHS9Re7
— Bullets Forever (@BulletsForever) January 17, 2023
(The Wizards aren’t among the best teams in the NBA, so you are unlikely to vote for any Wizard, no matter how good his stats look.)
Even if you vote for players like Kyle Kuzma, Kristaps Porzingis or Bradley Beal, chances are high that you are still very selective. Forty-seven percent (27 votes) of you said that you would vote for ONE Wizards player, but not two or three considering their sub .500 record. So, most of you have a high degree of “basketball purism” or “Grinchism” in your All-Star Game voting philosophy.
How can the Wizards get more votes for the All-Star Game? The simplest way is to win more games, and the love will come from the entire league, not just a few over-crazed Wizards fans. For now, all we can do is hope that Kyle Kuzma can move up the rankings for All-Star starters because fan voting only makes up half of the weight for rankings, not all of it like the “good old days.”