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Pacers' Artest among hopefuls Posted: Monday January 27, 2003 7:17 PMNEW YORK (Ticker) -- Talented and temperamental forward Ron Artest of the Indiana Pacers is among a handful of players hoping to hear their name when reserves for the NBA All-Star Game are announced Tuesday. The short list also includes superstars Shaquille O'Neal and Michael Jordan, who were not elected as starters in final fan balloting released Thursday and may not play at all. Artest is one of the league's best defensive players and also averages 15.7 points per game. He has a number of factors working both for and against him. In his favor, Artest plays for the Pacers, who have the best record in the Eastern Conference. He also is a forward, a position not deep in terms of talent in the East. Pacers forward Jermaine O'Neal was voted as a starter. As the East's best team, Indiana should have multiple representatives. But the New Jersey Nets had the best record in the East last season and had just one All-Star -- guard Jason Kidd. Artest also has been involved in several on-court incidents. He was ejected for fighting with Raja Bell of Dallas and earlier this month was suspended three games and fined $35,000 for smashing a camera following a loss in his hometown of New York. Although he believes he is deserving of selection, Artest will not campaign for a berth. "I do think I'm one of the best forwards in our league," he said. "I think I can take anybody, I can guard anybody. But I won't be disappointed if I'm not selected. It would be a great honor." Shaquille O'Neal and Jordan are perennial All-Stars who were nosed out in fan voting by younger players. O'Neal, the 7-1, 350-pound center of the Los Angeles Lakers, was beaten out by Chinese rookie Yao Ming of the Houston Rockets. Jordan, the 39-year-old fan favorite of the Washington Wizards, lost out to guards Tracy McGrady of the Orlando Magic and Allen Iverson of the Philadelphia 76ers. It is possible that both players will be chosen as reserves but opt against participating in the midseason gala on February 9 in Atlanta. O'Neal has been somewhat hobbled this season as he recovers from offseason toe surgery, and four days off may do him and the struggling defending champions some good. Jordan already has said that he would not play unless he was voted in as a starter. But Jordan has declared that this will be his last season, and NBA officials may ask the most popular player of all time to reconsider. In the East, others certain to receive consideration are centers Brad Miller of Indiana, Kurt Thomas of New York and Zydrunas Ilgauskas of Cleveland; forwards Kenyon Martin of New Jersey, Paul Pierce and Antoine Walker of Boston, Jalen Rose of Chicago, and Jamal Mashburn of New Orleans; and guards Kidd, Ray Allen and Sam Cassell of Milwaukee, Allan Houston of New York, Ricky Davis of Cleveland, Baron Davis of New Orleans, Jerry Stackhouse of Washington and Richard Hamilton of Detroit. In the West, possible selections include centers O'Neal and Vlade Divac of Sacramento; forwards Dirk Nowitzki of Dallas, Chris Webber and Peja Stojakovic of Sacramento, Karl Malone and Matt Harpring of Utah, Rasheed Wallace of Portland, Antawn Jamison of Golden State and Elton Brand of the Los Angeles Clippers; and guards Steve Nash and Michael Finley of Dallas, John Stockton of Utah, Mike Bibby and Bobby Jackson of Sacramento, and Gary Payton of Seattle. Last year, Pierce, Walker, Kidd, Allen, Baron Davis, Stackhouse, Nowitzki, Webber, Stojakovic, Malone, Brand, Nash and Payton made the All-Star team. While fans voted for the starters, coaches select the reserves, although they are not permitted to vote for their own players. Two forwards, two guards and a center must be added to each team before two more players are added regardless of position. Fan balloting placed Iverson, McGrady, Jermaine O'Neal, forward Vince Carter of Toronto and center Ben Wallace of Detroit on the East squad. McGrady received more than 1.3 million votes, while Wallace is a first-time All-Star. The starters for the West are Yao, forwards Tim Duncan of San Antonio and Kevin Garnett of Minnesota and guards Kobe Bryant of the Lakers and Steve Francis of Houston. Yao is the first rookie to start an All-Star Game since Grant Hill did it with Detroit in 1995. Bryant, the MVP of last year's game, led all players with nearly 1.5 million votes. The coaches were determined last week by virtue of records. Rick Adelman of the Sacramento Kings will coach the West and Isiah Thomas of Indiana will guide the East. The Dallas Mavericks have the NBA's best record, but coach Don Nelson guided the West last year and rules prevent coaches from working consecutive All-Star Games. The teams will wear uniforms with the same design as those worn in the 1988 game, which featured 13 of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players, including Jordan. The East will wear white and the West red. The All-Star Game will be held at Philips Arena and televised by TNT at 8 p.m. EST. © 2003 SportsTicker Enterprises, LP
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