Should Klay Thompson be eligible for All-Star Voting?

Should Klay Thompson be eligible for All-Star Voting?

Should Klay Thompson be eligible for All-Star Voting? Look that is the million-dollar question, it truly is. The biggest debate surrounding this question – and player – would be Devin Booker and Klay Thompson. Right? I believe so because so many are baffled that more than 700,000 people have voted for Thompson than Booker.

In today’s membership post we will be looking at everything Klay Thompson has gone through to make this valid, what makes this invalid and just non-worthy, why this debate is so hot, and so much more. I’m not going be biased or reveal who’s side I take; however, if you want to see it go to our Twitter account. Trust me, I have been more vocal about that than anything else.

So, firstly, let’s kick it off from the very beginning. To get the best answer we must view it from the beginning.

His injuries and the comeback:

Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals, Raptors versus Warriors. Klay Thompson drives to the basket gets contact by Danny Green and as soon as he hit the deck, you could see the pain written on his face. The knee landed awkwardly and the rest was history. Warriors lost to the Kawhi-led Raptors and his journey began.

Fast forward to the 2020 NBA Draft, the night of the draft had many in question of what the Warriors were going to do with the second-overall pick of that draft. Why? Because Klay Thompson while scrimmaging to rehab his torn ACL, tears another ACL but this time on the other knee. Forcing him out of his comeback season and into another year waiting and watching the Warriors be the Warriors.

James Wiseman was selected with the second-overall pick – not LaMelo Ball – and the Warriors decided to carry on with Thompson as no one could have believed the news.

So, in a brief summary, his journey began back in 2019-2020 and now has taken him into the 2021-2022 season. With knee injuries happening to both knees and just struggling to stay healthy. However, the hope and drive was very much alive.

The Comeback Game

After 941 days away from the game, Thompson scored 17 points against the Cavaliers in his comeback game. The comeback date was January 9th, 2022. When he was making his way onto the court during the intros, the crowd went CRAZY.

Here is the video:

Something special, whether you watched the highlights or the entire game – doesn’t matter, still special!

Let’s get into the things that makes this a valid move to allow him to be voted in:

Now that we know, briefly, what happened two years ago and the comeback; let us get into why he should be allowed to be voted in, then we will talk about why he shouldn’t, then we will wrap it up with our final thoughts and what we believe should be the happening with Thompson. This way we go full circle to get an educated answer – or a biased one.

Reason #1 – award the man for his dedication to come back after strong adversity

That takes some serious dedication, determination to come back and continue to work for the game that you love. That is special and that is hard work times one-hundred, without fail. Because it isn’t like he had one major knee injury, he had two knee injuries in back-to-back years to both of his knees. Do you know how tough that is? That is significant!

The Warriors could have moved on and told him to sit out of this season too, if the rehab or he wasn’t feeling it. You have to imagine that he grind through that rehabilitation, right? You have to imagine that he sped up the process, did what he was told, worked through the pain, and just exceeded and checked every single box.

I believe hard work, dedication, and doing it the right way should be rewarded.

Reason #2 – why should he be punished for voters not liking it?

He never begged for 700,000+ votes, never complained once. Out of everything he could have been thinking about, I do not believe he was thinking about how many votes he was going to get. That is up to the voter and who they wanted to put in; so, for people to think he should get penalized just because he hasn’t contributed anything to the season, or even has played is absurd. Why? Because he came back and is trying to set his mark again.

Whatever fan voters do is on their own accord – not Klay Thompsons.

He just wanted to play again, this is a bonus to him and people cannot get upset. Even if we disagree about him receiving so many votes or that he is beating out someone like Devin Booker; should that go against Klay Thompson? No. Because it was, and still is, fans voting for this player and for all the different players out there.

Now, let’s get into the things that makes this an invalid move to allow him to be voted in:

Reason #1 – by allowing him to be able to be voted in, he is stealing votes for a much deserved player

Look, beyond Devin Booker, there are many deserving players that could use those 700,000+ votes to get into a spotlight of recognition through the NBA All-Star. Imagine a veteran or a young and upcoming talent trying to get in, however, not many people are going to look for him because they want Thompson.

The NBA should recognize that and instead of promoting Thompson in the NBA All-Star voting, it should be for younger players and players that actually deserve it.

Imagine getting snubbed for a guy that hasn’t done anything in two years, getting all the attention because of his former success, and now people are ready to go back to what they were comfortable with and instead of trying something new. Plus, the NBA is not helping by promoting him and being selfish by not promoting the players that need it the most.

Just think about it, as it makes many think about it.

Reason #2 – it cheapens the NBA All-Star Game & Voting

Look, you get that the guy is battling, you get that he is made for this game. However, doesn’t that just cheapen the game when a guy comes walking in, doing absolutely nothing, and stealing an earning talent’s spot? We should really think about these points and how many players would benefit with that exposure to the media, to the fans, and everyone nationwide.

Plus, it would be an earning reward for the most trying players. If you want something to be amazing, authentic, and true to it’s core… then reject him from voting. Because voters will understand the circumstances and it isn’t the biggest deal in the world.

Conclusion – what do we believe?

Look, I get it. I get it completely that fans around the world, around the league wouldn’t want Klay Thompson to be getting all of these votes. Vice Versa. So, you guys want to our opinion on this question/debate? Well, here it is:

I believe that he should not be banned from being voted in, sure it stinks we can’t see someone like Booker get in because of him. However, fans call the shots here and if the NBA wanted to do something they could. But where is the fun in that? Why would they veto a voted-in player because they didn’t like the result? If fans felt there was no need to get him into the All-Star, guess what. He wouldn’t be in there.

I’m not a fan of him getting into the All-Star but to say he should be ineligible for this year’s All-Star Game is crazy. I believe every player should have a fair choice to get selected, why bar that from him? I do not believe it is needed. To me? It does cheapen the All-Star Game, however, it is also great to see a star shine bright again. Especially at his comeback season.

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