There’s never been a time when the NBA’s All-Star selections weren’t heavily debated. It is part of what makes the annual tradition so cherished during the season. However, this year’s argument felt less about fan bias or the market odds and more about the lack of logic, which is what caught Draymond Green’s attention. The outspoken Golden State Warriors forward admitted he was “very, very, very shocked” by Adam Silver and the coaches leaving out one player.

“I wonder if the voting somehow was impacted by the format of the game,” Green said on The Draymond Green Show. “And the reason I wonder that is because it’s baffling to me that Brandon Ingram’s not in the All-Star game… It just doesn’t make sense to me that Brandon Ingram isn’t on here.”

Green’s case for Ingram isn’t unwarranted. As the leading scorer of the Toronto Raptors in his first full year there, Ingram has helped lead the team to one of the best records in the Eastern Conference. This season, the forward is averaging 21.9 points per game, along with 3.7 assists, 5.9 rebounds, 0.8 steals, and 0.8 blocks, a pretty well-rounded stat line.

However, his Raptors teammate Scottie Barnes instead got the nod, which is fair given his defensive impact, but given that the team currently sits at the No. 4 seed, there’s a good reason for them to have two All-Star players this season, like the top-seeded Detroit Pistons, who are represented by Cade Cunningham and Jalen Duren.

“I was surprised by Pascal [Siakam] making the All-Star game because, yes, he has great numbers, but their team has the worst record in the Eastern Conference,” Green continued. “What’s the criteria? Sometimes winning does matter, sometimes doesn’t matter. Is it affected by the World-USA thing?”

Green pointed to historical examples, like the infamous 2019-20 season, when Bradley Beal averaged 30.5 points per game but didn’t make the All-Star team, becoming, at the time, the highest points-per-game average to miss out. Many pointed to the Washington Wizards being the worst team in the league as the reason, but it still remains one of the most controversial snubs in recent memory.

For Green, however, if Beal couldn’t have been an All-Star selection, neither should Siakam.

Draymond Green puts MPJ on the growing list of NBA All-Star snubs, amid trying to figure out the Siakam logic

Brandon Ingram wasn’t the only player Draymond Green labelled a snub for the All-Star game. After listing out his objections about Ingram being omitted for Siakam, he added another notable player having an amazing season: Brooklyn Nets forward Michael Porter Jr.

“[Siakam] pretty much has the same record as the Brooklyn Nets,” Green added. “And Michael Porter Jr.’s played incredible basketball, averaging great numbers, and doesn’t get in.”

Porter, after being traded from the Denver Nuggets this offseason, has had a career year, averaging highs across the board: 25.6 points per game, 7.3 rebounds, as well as nearly four made three-pointers a game.

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Green focused his argument on the new format for the All-Star game: USA vs World. The format makes it clear that at least seven international players must be selected for the All-Star game, given the league’s increasingly diverse makeup. Siakam, being Cameroonian, was likely chosen for this reason, and Green’s comments clearly throw Silver’s plans into jeopardy and question his authority.

Fellow podcaster and retired NBA veteran Gilbert Arenas was also stunned after Ingram missed out on an All-Star selection. While he was baffled by Silver and the coaches’ choice to select Siakam, he also tried to make cases for the Los Angeles Clippers duo of Kawhi Leonard and James Harden, alongside the Philadelphia 76ers’ Joel Embiid.

So far, there’s still a chance Ingram or Porter Jr. can make the game as an injury replacement, given Giannis Antetokounmpo’s ongoing calf strain. However, we can be certain that Green has a point.