Selecting the NBA All-Star reserves

We just passed the one-third mark of the season, and we've already got our All-Star starting fives? You betcha.

The East and West starters, selected by a fan vote, were announced last night by the NBA.

Not surprisingly, the 10 players that led balloting on Jan. 19 wound up getting selected to the team. Slightly surprisingly, for the most part, fans nailed their ballots.

Dwight Howard received 1,600,390, the most of any player. The selection is Howard's sixth. The complete East starting five:

Guard: Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls, 1.5M votes, third selection
Guard: Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat, 1.3M votes, eighth selection
Center: Howard, Orlando Magic, 1.6M votes, sixth selection
Forward: LeBron James, Heat, 1.4M votes, eighth selection
Forward: Carmelo Anthony, Knicks, 1.0M votes, fifth selection

In the Western Conference, Kobe Bryant led the way. He picked up 1,555,479 votes, earning his 14th All-Star selection. The West:

Guard: Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers, 1.6M votes, 14th selection
Guard: Chris Paul, Los Angeles Clippers, 1.1M votes, fifth selection
Center: Andrew Bynum, Lakers, 1,1M votes, first selection
Forward: Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder, 1.3M votes, third selection
Forward: Blake Griffin, Clippers, 876,451 votes, second selection

Now, the fun begins: predicting which 14 players will be selected by the coaches (still unannounced) of the teams. You get two reserves at guard, a reserve center, two reserve forwards, and two additional players regardless of position. They will be announced on Feb. 9, but let's take a crack at it now:

Eastern Conference

Guard: Kyrie Irving
There's a chance, however slim it may be, that Irving could wind up in the 50/40/90 club . . . his rookie season. Your Rookie of the Year (sorry, Ricky), Irving is averaging 18.1 points per game on 51.1 percent from the floor, 41.1 percent from three, and 82.1 percent from the line. He's getting better, too, averaging 25.3 points on 58 percent shooting his last three games. And, he might lead the Cavs to the playoffs. To play the Heat in the first round. NBA theatre!

Guard: Deron Williams
He's back! After a slow start to his Nets career, then a slow start to the 2011-12 season, Williams has hit a groove. And a product of his play? Wins in New Jersey! Williams is averaging 29 points and 8.6 assists over his last five games, a period that the Nets have gone 3-2, including wins over the Sixers and Cavs. By the time the All-Star Game is played, he could be tracking toward a career year.

Center: Greg Monroe
It might be painful, but next time the Pistons are on T.V., watch the game. You can ignore the other four players in the lineup if you want . . . just watch Monroe. His command of the game in only his second season is very impressive. Monroe plays like he has been in the league for years . . . he is incredibly smart in the post, has blossomed into an elite rebounder, and if Howard winds up in the Western Conference, will be the East's premier center for several years.

Forward: Chris Bosh
The Heatles are headed to Orlando! Keep in mind, in the nine games Wade missed, the Heat went 8-1. As big of a role LeBron played in that, Bosh certainly contributed. His points (20.4 per game) and shooting percentage (52.1 percent) are both better than his career averages.

Forward: Andre Iguodala
The second forward spot was reserved, from the beginning, for a 76er. The only question was Iggy or Thaddeus Young. In the end, I went Iguodala. He's a terror on defense, will occasionally score 20 points, and has someone managed to keep a level head despite the constant trade rumors the past couple of years. He embodies a Philadelphia team that lookes elite.

Guard: Paul Pierce
The reason Boston is back in business? Pierce. The Celtics are 11-7 with Pierce, 0-3 without. His 3-point percentage is up from last year (43.8 percent from 37.4 percent), and gives the Eastern Conference someone to take the last shot. (Beware, Western Conference: Do NOT let The Truth get the ball late!)

Guard: Brandon Jennings
What makes Jennings' inclusion so much more difficult is how bad he was last year. As a sophomore, Jennings missed 19 games, his assist average dropped, his field goal percentage stayed below 40 percent, and he heaved -- and missed -- more threes. Jennings is still taking a lot of three this year, but he's hitting them at a much better clip -- 38 percent -- and his scoring (20.5 points per game) is the reason the Andrew Bogut-less Bucks are 10-11.

Western Conference

Guard: Steve Nash
At 37 years old -- 37!! -- Nash is shooting a career-best 55 percent from the floor, hitting more than 40 percent of his threes, still has a shot at his fifth 50/40/90 season, and is averaging just a hair less than a double-double (15.2 points, 9.9 assists). No, the Suns (8-13) aren't even very good with Nash on the court. But take him off that team, and you have the Bobcats of the West.

Guard: Russell Westbrook
Inexplicably, Westbrook is shooting more threes this year. It's just not his forte. He should be driving, and shooting short jumpers. Other then that, no complaints. His assist numbers are way down, but he looks like he'll average career highs in points and field goal percentage, and the Thunder are winning. Easy choice.

Center: Marc Gasol
Notice a common thread between last year's big Grizzlies injury and this year's big Grizzlies injury? Rudy Gay goes down in 2010-11, Memphis rallies. Zach Randolph goes down this year, Memphis stays in playoff picture. Who's been in the lineup for each stretch? Gasol. His rebounding numbers have skyrocketed -- partly due to Randolph's injury -- and he's playing up to his bulky contract.

Forward: Kevin Love
Maybe the one guy on the bench deserving of a spot in the starting lineup. 25.3 points per game, 13.6 rebounds per game, 20 double-doubles in 22 games, and now a perimeter game? Love is quickly becoming one of the toughest match-ups in the league.

Forward: LaMarcus Aldridge
Six seasons in the league, six straight years of improvement. Aldridge is averaging a career high in points per game, is just a shade below his career high in rebounds, he's shooting 50 percent from the floor, and he has one of the best individual performances in a game this season (his 33-23 performance against Toronto on Jan. 20).

Forward: Danilo Gallinari
Of all the Western Conference All-Stars, Gallinari's stats are the most underwhelming. Blame that on his bouts with inconsistency. When Gallo is on, he makes an argument for the third best small forward in the league, behind LeBron and Durant (yes, that includes Melo). For some reason, the Nuggets No. 1 scorer still has a reputation as a one dimensional 3-point threat, but his offensive game is far more refined than that.

Forward: Paul Millsap
In 32 minutes per game, Millsap is averaging 17 points and nine boards. He and Al Jefferson have managed to turn a Jazz team that is supposedly in the middle of a rebuilding stage into a playoff contender.