They once booed Santa Claus in this city, so it should come as no surprise that they let a native son have it full bore, both barrels, as well.

Any other city would have been delighted that a player only six years removed from his senior year at a local high school would have been the best player in the world for a day in the All-Star Game they hosted.

But Philadelphia, a city that could make Larry Flynt blush, mercilessly booed Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant as he led his West team to a decisive 135-120 victory in First Union Center.

Bryant, by virtue of his 31 points, five assists, five rebounds, one steal and no turnovers in 30 minutes was named the MVP, but his day was marred by his reception.

"I was pretty upset, pretty hurt," said Bryant, who looked as if he wanted to cry. "I just wanted to come out and play hard. But they booed."

While Michael Jordan was given a standing ovation by the crowd during pregame introductions that was even larger than the cheers hometown hero Allen Iverson received, Bryant was the only player disparaged during the initial proceedings.

"Coming into today's game, I was a little worried about it," Bryant said. "I don't know. I mean, I don't know what to say. It was not something that I can really describe the feelings that I have when it happened."

It would be easy to understand if Bryant was a player like Isaiah Rider or Rasheed Wallace, whose poor attitudes won well-deserved league-wide scorn. But Bryant is generally considered one of the most cooperative, appealing players in the league.

It would also be easy to assume that the condemnation came about because Bryant's team, the Lakers, defeated the Sixers in the NBA Finals last season. But Bryant said this is not the first time he has felt Philadelphia's wrath.

"My first game in the NBA, my rookie year, I came out of high school, my first game here they booed me a bit, too," Bryant said. "And that really, really hurt because it was like my homecoming, you know, coming straight out of high school. That was very, very hurtful."

The fans did not reserve their disdain simply for pregame, either. They booed Bryant each time he touched the ball during the game, and seemed to revel when he missed a shot.

Then, when Bryant walked to midcourt after the game to receive the MVP trophy, the fans booed before the broadcast of the ceremony even started.

Once NBA commissioner David Stern took the microphone on national TV, the fans continued to let Bryant hear their inexplicable displeasure.

"That's nuts," the Seattle SuperSonics' Gary Payton said. "He didn't do anything. I can't understand it. He is from this city. They should support him more. A lot of guys go home and they get support, they don't get booed like that. But that's the way Philly is, I guess, that's the way they want to be."

As for the game, the East simply could not compete with the bigger, deeper, more talented West squad - a simple statement about the disparity in play between the conferences during the regular season.

However, while the West controlled the game by halftime, the play of the game belonged to Orlando's Tracy McGrady, who was leading a fastbreak in the second quarter.

As McGrady reached the foul line, he threw the ball up as if he was throwing an alley-oop pass to a teammate.

When the West defenders turned to look, they realized McGrady had really thrown the ball off the backboard to himself. He elevated, controlled the carom and threw down a dunk that brought the fans out of their seats.

"I have done that dunk numerous times in high school," McGrady said, "so I just wanted to try it on the NBA level. It was a great opportunity to pull it off."

As for Jordan, he looked much older than the youngsters with whom he was running. He had a few impressive plays, totaling eight points, four rebounds and three assists, but his night will be remembered for a breakaway dunk attempt that he missed, banging it off the back of the rim and out of bounds.

"It has been a while since I've been in that circumstance," Jordan said. "The wheels started turning, and I start trying to figure out, well, what will you do? And at the last minute, you think, well, just dunk it. And you lose concentration.

"I laugh at myself. If I can't laugh at myself, I can't laugh at anybody."

Unless you're from Philly.

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All-Star Game

West 135,

East 120