NBA.com asked its writers which player from the West will make the All-Star game for the first time, and both David Aldridge and Steve Aschburner picked Gordon Hayward.

Aldridge wrote, “Monster output (23 ppg) in a contract year; he’s going to get paid next summer, and he should be rewarded this winter for his excellent play.”

Aschburner went into more detail with his selection, saying, “It’s tougher to find a first-timer in the West, because so many established All-Stars are having worthy seasons and keeping their teams aloft in the standings.”

After talking about the play of Memphis Grizzlies’ point guard Mike Conley, Aschburner continued, “Hayward is averaging career highs in scoring (23.1), rebounding (6.4) and player efficiency (23.8) and, despite some mediocre shooting stats, is the likeliest Jazz player to be rewarded when the conference coaches sit down to flesh out the rosters, scanning the best candidates from teams with winning records.”

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