A Look at All-Star Balloting: The Best So Far

According to the fine folks at the WNBA, the 2009 All-Star Ballot needs to be entered by web or have a postmark date by July 7, 2009 - which means that time is running out. (If you mail it by July 7th, it has to arrive at the WNBA offices by July 10th.)

So let's look at who deserves to be named starters so far:

Eastern Conference

Guards on the ballot: Beard, Bevilaqua, Carson, Douglas, Harding, Moore, Nolan, Perkins, Phillips, K. Smith, Teasley, Toliver, Whalen
Who should be picked: Perkins, Beard

You'd just have to be a blind home rooter not to pick Alana Beard of the Mystics for an All-Star start. In Quentin McCall's point guard ratings, if Perkins isn't the best point guard in the Eastern Conference, then she's at least one of the best.

Forwards on the ballot: Catchings, Christon, Coleman, De Souza, Dupree, Hoffman, Holdsclaw, Holt, Jones, Kraayeveld, McCoughtry, McWilliams, Nan, Pierson, Sanford
Who should be picked: Catchings
Who you should write in: Sancho Lyttle

Face it, one of the big reasons that the Dream has turned itself around is Sancho Lyttle...but how were the balloteers to know that? We need to start a "Vote for Sancho" movement and vote for her every day, because the only way she's going to make the squad is if we write her in. As for the other player, Catchings, her play has helped the Fever to the top spot in the Eastern Conference. She was named the top small forward by the WNBA GMs this year, and their judgment has proven true.

Centers on the ballot: Ford, Fowles, McCarville, Melvin, Snow, Sutton-Brown, Whitmore
Who you should write in: Erika De Souza
If you don't believe Erika is a center: Fowles

De Souza is in that sort of between-zone between forward and center, and a good case could be made that Erika could slide in as an starting All-Star as a center. I intend to write her in as the center on my ballot; she was a center on the Brazilian national team. If, on the other hand, you believe that de Souza is just an oversized forward, then you could put down Sylvia Fowles. This means that the Eastern Conference starters should either have two Sky players or two Dream players.

Western Conference

Guards on the ballot: Bird, Hammon, T. Johnson, V. Johnson, Lawson, Lennox, K. Miller, Montgomery, Parker, Penicheiro, Taurasi, Wiggins, Wright
Who should be picked: Taurasi, Bird

Really, how can you go wrong with Taurasi and Bird?

Forwards on the ballot: Augustus, Bonner, Brunson, Cash, Jackson, Milton-Jones, Perperoglou, Pondexter, Powell, Thompson, Young
Who should be picked: Jackson, Augustus
If you want an active player instead of Augustus: Pondexter

Jackson is my #1 for MVP this year. Seimone was damn big for the Lynx before they lost her this year to injury. I'm still up in the air if I should name Augustus to the All-Star team just on the strength of six games. In which case, the next logical choice is Pondexter.

Centers on the ballot: Anosike, Burse, Leslie, Riley, Smith, Walker
Who should be picked: Anosike

Most years it would be Leslie. Don't fall victim to sentiment. Anosike belongs as an All-Star starter.

Anyway, the ballot is here. You know the drill! Vote (for Sancho)!

UPDATE: It looks like you only get one write-in vote on the web page. In which case, I'll say it again, Vote for Sancho.