Hilariously, anytime an NFL player (probably applies to NBA too) is referenced in an article, it is always a STAR player no matter whether anyone’s ever heard of the guy or not.
Some rookie with a total of 8 NFL starts is not a “star”. The most notable thing he’s ever done up to now is to get shot at.
Another example: the liberal media always refers to ex-NFL sideline scrub Colin Allred as a “star”, because he’s a Democrat who is running for a high-profile office (U.S. Senate) and the media desperately hopes he will win & will do anything possible (no matter how subtle) to assist him.
Here’s a laughable sample headline from CNN (without a link to that garbage site):
“Colin Allred: Ex-NFL STAR Congressman bewildered by Jan 6 insurrection’s ‘rage and mob mentality’”
Colin Allred’s albatross is everyone knows he’d be Chuck Schumer’s lackey. Texans will not abide that. In the primary, Ted Cruz racked up 1.5 million votes, while the combined Democrat vote was 700K.