7 Worst All-Star Game snubs in Los Angeles Lakers history

No. 3: Byron Scott, 1987-88

The Los Angeles Lakers in 1987-88 were simply too good for the All-Star Team to handle. At the full height of their Showtime powers, they still had Kareem Abdul-Jabbar dropping in Sky Hooks while flanked by the electric Magic Johnson and the steady James Worthy. The Lakers would win 62 games that season and win another championship that year.

What is often forgotten about the Lakers during that stretch is that as Kareem's career tailed off the Lakers had a relatively unheralded player ready to step up. The Lakers were not led in scoring that year by Kareem, Magic or Worthy; instead it was guard Byron Scott, averaging 21.7 points per game to go along with 4.1 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.9 steals.

91 players have hit those marks in a season through NBA history, and 75 of them made the All-Star team in those seasons. Most of the 16 who didn't were either injured early in the season or played for a bad team; Scott was neither of those things. He is the only player in NBA history to play at least 60 games for a 50-win team, hit those benchmarks and not make the team. It's an inexplicable oversight.

The reason it occurred was that Kareem got a legacy selection despite being on the tail end of his career, and James Worthy had more star power than Scott. The Lakers probably should have had four All-Stars, with Scott making it over Alvin Robertson putting up purely points on a bad San Antonio Spurs team.

However you slice it, Byron Scott was one of the most egregious All-Star snubs not only in Lakers history, but in all of NBA history.