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 General Basketball WiretapMJ, Shaq Head List of All-Star ReservesThe Coaches have voted and today the reserves for the February 9th All-Star Game at Philips Arena in Atlanta were announced. The 14 players selected -- seven each from the Eastern and Western Conferences -- were chosen by a vote of the respective head coaches in each conference. Michael Jordan of the Washington Wizards and Shaquille O"Neal of the Los Angeles Lakers head up the East and West squads of reserves respectively. Joining Jordan on the East squad are Boston's Paul Pierce and Antoine Walker, New Jersey's Jason Kidd and first-time All-Stars Zydrunas Ilgauskas of Cleveland, Brad Miller of Indiana and Jamal Mashburn of New Orleans. O"Neal will be joined on the West squad by Sacramento's Chris Webber, Seattle's Gary Payton, Dallas' Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki and Phoenix's Stephon Marbury and first-time All-Star Shawn Marion. The 29 NBA head coaches were asked to vote for seven players in their respective conferences -- two guards, two forwards, a center and two players regardless of position. They were not permitted to vote for players from their own team. Should any player be unable to participate in the All-Star Game due to injury, NBA Commissioner David Stern will select the replacement. Indiana's Isiah Thomas will coach the East All-Stars and Sacramento's Rick Adelman will coach the West. Same as every year 2003 brought a long list of snubbings, with some of the names of those missing out being Ron Artest of the Pacers, Kenyon Martin of the Nets, Jerry Stackhouse of the Wizards, Jalen Rose of the Bulls, Ray Allen of the Bucks, Richard Hamilton of the Pistons, New York's Allan Houston and Latrell Sprewell, Michael Finley of the Mavericks, and Utah's Karl Malone and John Stockton just to name a few. Read the Full Story Discuss Send Feedback LeBron James Can't DriveJames may be an incredible basketball phenom but he still has to learn how to drive... his car. According to ESPN, on the same day the Ohio High School Athletic Association ruled the purchase of the $50,000 vehicle for James did not violate its amateur rules, an 88-year-old woman filed a police report Monday claiming that James, the nation's top high school basketball player, backed his $50,000 ride into her car. Read the Full Story Discuss Send Feedback Lebron Will Never Play for the CavsAccording to ESPN, the Cleveland Cavaliers might have opened up a bigger can of worms after the firing of head coach John Lucas. Monday's move might have damaged relations with high school phenom LeBron James, the 6-8 senior from St. Vincent-St. Mary who is the projected No. 1 pick in the NBA draft. Citing a source close to the SVSM team, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported Thursday that the firing did not go over well with James. "I tell you what, LeBron will never play for the Cavs after this," the source told the newspaper. "LeBron really likes coach Lucas. He was mad when he heard about it." James and Lucas' connection goes back to last summer, when James attended a private workout with some of the Cavaliers. The NBA suspended Lucas for two games at this season's start and fined the team $150,000 for a violation of league rules. Lucas apparently also heard about James' reported feelings about his dismissal. "I appreciate what LeBron said, but now I want my money back," Lucas told the newspaper, laughing. James has no control over which team drafts him in June, but if he did not want to play for that team, he has some choices. A team that drafts a player in the first round owns that player's rights until next year's draft if the team makes the player an offer by July 15. If the player does not sign, he can re-enter the draft and can be selected by any team. James could sit out a year, or according to the report, use the "threat" of not playing as trade leverage. "Kobe [Bryant] and a lot of other guys have had a say about which franchises they wanted to play for, and this might make LeBron cross the Cavs off his list," the source told the Plain Dealer. Cleveland Cavaliers, NBA Draft, General Basketball Read the Full Story Discuss Send Feedback Buy Tickets Jan 2003 Archive
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