Okay, so I got thinking about past NBA All-Star games the other day, and the 2009 game in Phoenix popped into my head. I couldn’t quite remember everyone who played, you know? It feels like a while ago now. So, I figured I’d look it up, just to refresh my memory.
Fired up the computer, did a quick search for the “2009 NBA All-Star Game rosters”. Took a couple of clicks, sifted through some results, and pretty quickly found what I was looking for. Wanted to get the full list, starters and reserves for both East and West.
Here’s what I dug up and jotted down:
Eastern Conference All-Stars
- Starters: Allen Iverson
- Starters: Dwyane Wade
- Starters: LeBron James
- Starters: Kevin Garnett
- Starters: Dwight Howard
- Reserves: Ray Allen
- Reserves: Devin Harris
- Reserves: Joe Johnson
- Reserves: Danny Granger
- Reserves: Paul Pierce
- Reserves: Chris Bosh (replaced Jameer Nelson due to injury)
- Reserves: Mo Williams (replaced Chris Bosh due to injury, Bosh still played though?) Wait, checking that… okay yeah, Bosh got injured before the game but was still listed, Mo Williams replaced Nelson, Ray Allen replaced Bosh as a starter. Gets confusing. Let’s just list who was selected and played.
- Coached by: Mike Brown (Cleveland Cavaliers)
Okay, correction based on what I found: Nelson was injured, replaced by Ray Allen on the roster. Bosh was injured, replaced by Mo Williams. Allen Iverson also didn’t play due to personal reasons, replaced by Mo Williams as a reserve? No, Allen started… I need to double check this again. Okay, sources say Nelson out -> Ray Allen in. Bosh out -> Mo Williams in. Jameer Nelson was selected but couldn’t play. Chris Bosh was selected but couldn’t play. Ray Allen and Mo Williams were the injury replacements.
Let’s redo that East list based on who actually was named and available/played:
Eastern Conference Roster (Corrected List)
- Starters: Allen Iverson
- Starters: Dwyane Wade
- Starters: LeBron James
- Starters: Kevin Garnett
- Starters: Dwight Howard
- Reserves: Ray Allen (replaced Jameer Nelson)
- Reserves: Devin Harris
- Reserves: Joe Johnson
- Reserves: Danny Granger
- Reserves: Paul Pierce
- Reserves: Mo Williams (replaced Chris Bosh)
- Reserves: Rashard Lewis (selected, played)
- Coached by: Mike Brown
That looks more right based on who was actually there and who replaced who. Man, tracking injury replacements can be tricky sometimes.
Western Conference All-Stars
- Starters: Chris Paul
- Starters: Kobe Bryant
- Starters: Amar’e Stoudemire
- Starters: Tim Duncan
- Starters: Yao Ming
- Reserves: Chauncey Billups
- Reserves: Tony Parker
- Reserves: Brandon Roy
- Reserves: Pau Gasol
- Reserves: David West
- Reserves: Dirk Nowitzki
- Reserves: Shaquille O’Neal
- Coached by: Phil Jackson (Los Angeles Lakers)
Yeah, that West lineup looks solid. Shaq and Kobe back together for the All-Star game, coached by Phil Jackson. That was something.
So, that was my little trip down memory lane, just digging up those 2009 rosters. Pretty stacked teams when you look back at them now. Good times.
