Julius Randle is officially the NBA's most disrespected star and it's not even close

Minnesota Timberwolves fans waited eagerly to see if they would have a second All-Star during Sunday's announcement of the 14 All-Star reserves. Of course, Anthony Edwards was a shoo-in for one of these spots after being snubbed for a starting spot. However, fans were curious to see if Julius Randle (or even Rudy Gobert) would join Ant-Man as an All-Star.

Unfortunately, the disappointment continued for Wolves fans as both Randle and Gobert were left off the All-Star roster. The Western Conference's seven reserves are: Edwards, Jamal Murray, Chet Holmgren, Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, Deni Avdija, and LeBron James.

By all means, this is a respectable list; however, not having Randle among these seven is disrespectful in my eyes. LeBron's inclusion over Randle is especially nonsensical, and I'd argue that Randle is the biggest snub in either conference.

Randle's importance to the Wolves' success both as a shot creator and playmaker is undeniable. Sadly, Randle being despised when discussing the league's stars is nothing new, though.

Randle should clearly be an All-Star

Let's be honest, LeBron is an absolute legend, but he's not having an All-Star caliber season. In just 30 games, he is averaging 21.9 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 6.6 assists. Conversely, Randle has appeared in all 50 games and is averaging 22.3 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 5.4 assists. The Timberwolves offense is 11.4 points per 100 possessions better with Randle on the court, a number that ranks in the 99th percentile according to Cleaning the Glass. However, the Lakers' offense is actually 2.6 worse with LeBron on the court.

LeBron is on the All-Star team in name only. When in reality, the All-Star rosters should be a screenshot of the season.

Beyond LeBron's inclusion, I'd argue that Randle deserved a spot over Chet Holmgren. Yes, Chet is a fantastic two-way player on the league's best team. However, the Thunder are a deeper team, and his offensive contributions aren't as valuable to the Thunder as Randle's are to the Wolves.

Kawhi Leonard and Alperen Sengun are two other notable omissions. However, Leonard's lack of games played (34) and the Rockets having more offensive firepower around Sengun give Randle a stronger snub case to me. And again, this is far from the first time Randle has been overlooked.

In terms of Eastern Conference snubs, I would argue that Michael Porter Jr. should have made it over Karl-Anthony Towns. However, that's far more reasonable than Randle's snub.

Randle is routinely disrespected

Despite his undeniable production, Randle never seems to get his proper recognition when discussing the league's best players. When the Timberwolves traded for him, the consensus was that they lost the trade. In doing so, these people ignored Randle's fit next to Anthony Edwards, along with the financial and depth benefits of the trade for Minnesota. New York Knicks fans turned on him despite his crucial role in turning the franchise around.

Even though Randle disproved the longstanding narrative about not being able to perform in the playoffs last year and put together a stellar season, he has received little mainstream praise. My point is that Randle being disrespected is nothing new, and I'd argue he's now become the league's most underappreciated star -- frankly, I can't think of anyone else who has this strong a case. 

Whether it's by fans, the media, or the coaches (in the case of All-Star reserve voting), Randle never gets the praise that he deserves, and that's truly a shame.