Six first-time All-Stars to make debut Feb. 15 in Los Angeles Shaq, Kidd Lead List of All-Star Reserves NEW YORK, Feb. 3 –- New Jersey Nets guard Jason Kidd, a seven-time NBA All-Star, and Shaquille O'Neal of the Los Angeles Lakers, selected to his 11th All-Star Game, headline today's announcement of the reserves for the 2004 NBA All-Star Game, to be played on Sunday, Feb. 15 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles. The 14 players selected -- seven each from the Eastern and Western Conferences -- were chosen by a vote of the 29 NBA head coaches. The coaches were asked to vote for seven players in their respective conferences -- two guards, two forwards, one center and two players regardless of position. They were not permitted to vote for players from their own team. Joining Kidd on the East team will be Boston's Paul Pierce and New Orleans' Baron Davis and first-time All-Stars Ron Artest of Indiana, Michael Redd of Milwaukee, Kenyon Martin New Jersey and Jamaal Magloire of New Orleans. First-timers Sam Cassell of Minnesota and Andrei Kirilenko of Utah join O'Neal, Dallas' Dirk Nowitzki, Peja Stojakovic and Brad Miller of Sacramento and Seattle's Ray Allen on the West squad. Previously selected, as starters for the East through the NBA All-Star 2004 Balloting Program were Detroit's Ben Wallace, Indiana's Jermaine O'Neal, Orlando's Tracy McGrady, Philadelphia's Allen Iverson and Toronto's Vince Carter. Houston's Steve Francis and Yao Ming, Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota's Kevin Garnett and San Antonio's Tim Duncan will start for the West. The selections of Kirilenko (Russia), Magloire (Canada), Nowitzki (Germany) and Stojakovic (Serbia-Montenegro) along with voted-starters Duncan (U.S. Virgin Islands) and Yao (China), gives the 2004 All-Star Game six international players, tying the 2003 All-Star Game record for the most international All-Stars in one year. Should any player be unable to participate in the All-Star Game due to injury, NBA Commissioner David Stern will select the replacement. Rick Carlisle of the Indiana Pacers will coach the Eastern Conference All-Stars and Flip Saunders of the Minnesota Timberwolves will represent the Western Conference. The NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, Feb. 15 will be broadcast live by TNT, Rogers Sportsnet and ESPN Radio at 8 p.m. ET. The game will also be telecast in 212 countries and broadcast in several languages on NBA.com. For the second year in a row, NBA All-Stars will wear uniforms created just for the game. Last year, NBA All-Stars wore "Retro" uniforms from the 1988 All-Star Game, but this year the All-Stars will be outfitted in newly designed uniforms from Reebok –- created specifically for the 2004 NBA All-Star Game. NBA.com will provide basketball fans with the opportunity to have their vote count toward selecting the MVP of the 53rd NBA All-Star Game, as a part of the site's exclusive NBA All-Star 2004 coverage. Through the 2004 NBA All-Star Balloting program, which ran Nov. 13, 2003 through Jan. 18, 2004, fans had the opportunity to vote in more ways than ever. NBA All-Star Balloting expanded this season to include 17 languages on the NBA.com Network, downloadable ballots via Verizon Wireless and voting at Loews Cineplex Entertainment movie theaters along with Foot Locker, Circuit City and Champs Sports locations throughout the United States. Sprite, America Online, Champs Sports, Reebok and 989 Sports also returned as balloting partners this year. These outlets were in addition to ballots that were distributed in all 28 NBA arenas. The balloting partners provided links to the NBA.com All-Star Ballot from their home pages. NBA All-Star 2004 is a weeklong celebration that enables fans to experience the thrill of the world's greatest athletes playing the game they love and features a full slate of community enhancing activities and fan festivals. EASTERN CONFERENCE ALL-STARS Head coach: Rick Carlisle (Indiana) Player Team Pos. Ht. Wt. All-Star selections Ron Artest Indiana F 6-7 246 1 *Vince Carter Toronto F 6-6 225 5 Baron Davis New Orleans G 6-3 223 2 *Allen Iverson Philadelphia G 6-0 165 5 Jason Kidd New Jersey G 6-4 212 7 Jamaal Magloire New Orleans C 6-11 259 1 Kenyon Martin New Jersey F 6-9 234 1 *Tracy McGrady Orlando G/F 6-8 210 4 *Jermaine O'Neal Indiana C/F 6-11 242 3 Paul Pierce Boston G/F 6-6 230 3 Michael Redd Milwaukee G 6-6 215 1 *Ben Wallace Detroit C 6-9 240 2 WESTERN CONFERENCE ALL-STARS Head coach: Flip Saunders (Minnesota) Player Team Pos. Ht. Wt. All-Star selections Ray Allen Seattle G 6-5 205 4 *Kobe Bryant L.A. Lakers G 6-6 220 6 Sam Cassell Minnesota G 6-3 185 1 *Tim Duncan San Antonio F 7-0 260 6 *Steve Francis Houston G 6-3 200 3 *Kevin Garnett Minnesota F 6-11 240 7 Andrei Kirilenko Utah F 6-9 225 1 Brad Miller Sacramento C 7-0 261 2 Dirk Nowitzki Dallas F/C 7-0 245 3 Shaquille O'Neal L.A. Lakers C 7-1 340 11 Peja Stojakovic Sacramento F 6-10 229 3 *Yao Ming Houston
Those are pretty good selections. I think LeBron deserved a nod, but it's a tight field this year. I'm glad AK-47 and Michael Redd were chosen, too. Those are exciting players.
Yay! Sammy's been snubbed for the all-star game so many times, it's not funny. Nobody's worked harder to get their first appearance. He's doing an outstanding job for the Twolves this season, and has arguably become the best point guard in the NBA. Not that I'm biased or anything.
Can't wait to see the scintillating talents of Magliore play with the rest of the world's best basketball studs.
I think his team lobbied very hard to get him in there...and who else were they going to choose as a center...hmm...perhaps Ilgauskas, but his team's record is so much worse.
Yeah, I get what you're saying, SJC. I suppose, in my ideal version of the all star game, you could have only one center if only one center was all star worthy. Then you could give a deserving player more of a chance. Blah blah.
and I thought the problem would be Z vs LeBron going to the game. Having to have a backup center on the East screwed LeBron. I'm glad Paul Pierce didn't get bumped. I'm very happy for Redd and AK47. Evan
Magloire? I don't care about having a center. Post players shouldn't even be allowed to play in the game unless they're Ben Wallace, Shaq, or a few others. I'd rather see 3/2 guards and 2/3 forwards running most of the time.
Melo and James are two i think are unlucky Magloire is next best C available in east Redd is a tad lucky and i would maybe included James instead Allen is gold but did he really play enough
Redd deserves this all-star spot as much as LeBron. He has consistently been the best player on one of the surprise teams of the East. AK also deserves to be there. Remember when everyone on the board was saying Utah would be last in the West and Milwaukee right at the bottom in the East? AK and Redd both have taken their teams to mediocre/above average when all that was expected out of them was lottery fodder. Ray Allen hasn't played too much, but when he has, he has been on a tear. This man is doing it all, scoring, rebounding, passing, hitting the 3s. His selection as an All-Star reserve is questionable, but a very good decision nontheless by the coaches. Just goes to show that the coaches know what's up.
James made some pretty stupid comments yesterday about being an only-child and not wanting to be a substitute if someone gets injured, glad he did not get it this time.
Carmelo Anthony is even worse than Lebron - dissing a specific player and saying he should have been chosen instead...where is that Clutch "respect graph"...I need it for Carmelo Anthony... Melo, Miller lose in All-Star wars Chris Tomasson, Rocky Mountain News Memo to NBA commissioner David Stern: If you need to select a Western Conference injury replacement for the All-Star Game, don't dial area code 303. That was the word Tuesday from Carmelo Anthony and Andre Miller. The Denver Nuggets were miffed at not having been selected as reserves for the Feb. 15 game in Los Angeles. ADVERTISEMENT "I'm not going to play if somebody gets hurt," Anthony said. "I don't want to be picked if somebody gets hurt." "I would not be an injury replacement," Miller said. "I would only want to be picked the (regular way)." Stern often is called upon to name injury replacements. One possibility to sit out the game is Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant, a starter who is on the injured list because of a cut hand. In choosing the reserves, each Western Conference head coach voted for two guards, two forwards, a center and two players at any other position. Coaches could not vote for their own players. The reserves in the West are centers Shaquille O'Neal of the Lakers and Brad Miller of Sacramento; forwards Andrei Kirilenko of Utah, Dirk Nowitzki of Dallas and Peja Stojakovic of Sacramento; and guards Sam Cassell of Minnesota and Ray Allen of Seattle. Anthony, a rookie forward, was surprised Kirilenko was chosen. Anthony is averaging 19.0 points and 6.1 rebounds. Kirilenko is averaging 16.3 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.82 blocked shots and 2.07 steals. The Nuggets have a 29-21 record, the Jazz is 24-24. "I deserved to be in there," Anthony said. "But I still have a long career ahead of me. We've got a better record (than Utah). I'm not taking anything away from Kirilenko. It's a big turnaround for the Nuggets. We won 17 games (last season). Not to sound too selfish, but I was a big part of that. . . . When I saw who was on the reserves, I said, 'Man, I should have been on there.' " Miller, averaging 16.1 points and 6.4 assists, believes he would have been a better selection than Allen, picked for his fourth All-Star Game. Allen is averaging 23.5 points, but missed the first two months because of an ankle injury and has played in only 22 of 47 games. "I thought my chances were pretty good," Miller said. "We've got a better record than Utah and Seattle (23-23 going into Tuesday's game). To put guys who have been injured half the year on it, that's the politics of it. I'm surprised (Allen made it). I bet he's just as surprised." Anthony didn't have a problem with Allen's selection, calling him a "household name." Anthony said, "I can see Ray Allen, but Kirilenko, man." Nuggets general manager Kiki Vandeweghe declined to say Anthony or Miller should have been picked over a particular player. But he admitted some disappointment that neither made it. "I love our guys and I think they've played well enough (to be All- Stars)," he said. "But every year there are deserving players who don't get picked. Hopefully, this will inspire our guys." The Nuggets did not practice Tuesday. Head coach Jeff Bzdelik, who campaigned for Anthony and Miller, did not return a telephone message seeking comment. If there was any consolation to Anthony, fellow rookie phenom Le- Bron James, a Cleveland Cavaliers guard, was not selected as an Eastern Conference reserve. Anthony said he thought James "was going to make it before I did because the West is much tougher." Anthony and Miller took it as a shot against the Nuggets that the team had no selections. Of the 15 teams that entered Tuesday with a record of .500 or better, only Denver and Memphis do not have a representative. "I was surprised they didn't take anybody from us, but I guess it's Denver. That's why," Anthony said. "The Denver Nuggets are not a big name," Miller said. "I thought the way we're playing together, how we're gelling, at least one player should have made it." Anthony will travel to Los Angeles to play in the Rookie Challenge. But Miller won't be there, even if Stern calls. http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=knight-melomillerloseinallstarwa&prov=knight&type=lgns
Rookie mistake. I don't know too many teenagers who handle disappointment that well, especially when they feel entitled. Their reaction to All-Star snubs -- justified or not -- reminds us that they're still just kids. And, in a way, that makes their mature play on the court that much more amazing.
