No beef between Wall, Irving after Wall's comments on All-Star voting

The All-Star voting system has Kyrie Irving of the Cleveland Cavaliers slotted in the starting lineup for the Eastern Conference with 138,191 votes as of Dec. 25 - a staggering number considering he had just two games under his belt at the time of the first returns.

Washington Wizards point guard John Wall - recently named Player of the Month in the East for December, and fifth among guards with 103,094 votes of his own - was none too pleased with coming in behind Irving, saying it's "a joke" that he's trailing.

Irving was eventually made aware of Wall's comments, with the two point guards connecting to hash out any differences they may have - which turned out to be none at all.

"There were no ill-will emotions; there was no personal beef between John and me," Irving said, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer's Chris Haynes. "I respect him as a player, as a point guard in this league, and as a great player in this league. So for him to say that, the All-Star becomes a popularity contest and what the fans want to see. So their respective opinions (are) based on that."

While Irving is flattered by the support from NBA fans as he gets back to action following surgery to repair a fractured left kneecap, he understands Wall's stance, especially considering the season he's having in the nation's capital.

"For me, my respect for what I have for John goes way beyond the court, so there was no ill-will beef or anything like that, but he did make a valid point on me only playing two games and he was Eastern Conference Player of the Month, so that kind of goes without saying," Irving said. "So when you have feats like that, accomplishments like that, all you can do is respect it."

If Irving hadn't missed any time, he very well could have secured the votes anyway, having earned a spot on the roster every year since his rookie campaign. Cavaliers teammate LeBron James certainly thinks so.

"He's that good. He's that good," James said of Irving. "I mean, there would never be a question if Kyrie Irving is (an All-Star) as long as he's on the floor and he's healthy, and, I mean, there's not many guys if any, at the point guard level that's better than him. So I don't think it should even be a question."

Wall and Irving will collide Wednesday night when the Wizards host the Cavaliers at the Verizon Center.

Voting for the All-Star Game will conclude Jan. 18, with the game itself taking place on Valentine's Day at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto.