The fans have spoken.

The starters are set, announced Saturday.

Now it is up to NBA coaches to right wrongs and to fill out the 12-player All-Star rosters.

The fan balloting left us with the East starting lineup of Dikembe Mutombo at center, Vince Carter and Antoine Walker at forward and Michael Jordan and Allen Iverson at guard.

In the West, the fans selected as starters Shaquille O'Neal at center, Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan at forward and Kobe Bryant and Steve Francis at guard.

Because players were not necessarily listed at their proper positions on the ballot, the process proved less than perfect.

In the East, the starting center should have been Indiana's Jermaine O'Neal and Jason Kidd deserved the nod over Jordan, who has almost exclusively played forward this season.

In the West, the only issue is with Francis, who was sidelined for 19 games. The guard spot opposite Bryant should have gone to Gary Payton, who seemingly single-handedly has kept the Sonics afloat.

So be it.

In coming days, conference coaches will be asked to select the seven reserves on each roster. They will be required to select at least two guards, two forwards and one center, with none of their selections allowed to come from their own rosters.

The coaches' selections for the first five East reserves, by positions, likely will shake out as the Pacers' O'Neal at center, Kidd and Ray Allen at guard and Paul Pierce and Tracy McGrady at forward.

That leaves two at-large spots. Having finally distanced himself from the glut of forwards in the West, Atlanta's Shareef Abdur-Rahim again has put up All-Star numbers and this time deserves a selection.

The remaining spot, from this perspective, comes down to Pistons guard Jerry Stackhouse, Hornets guard Baron Davis and Heat center Alonzo Mourning, just ahead of a pack that includes Cavaliers guard Andre Miller and Knicks guards Allan Houston and Latrell Sprewell.

Considering an All-Star selection should factor in team success, Mourning, Miller, Houston and Sprewell fall way short on that count.

That brings it down to Stackhouse and Davis, players who have their teams positioned within playoff reach. Considering Detroit has nothing else other than Stackhouse, while Charlotte has greater depth around Davis, the nod here would go to Stackhouse.

Justifiably, Mourning deserves the second center spot over Mutombo, and the 76ers hardly are playing well enough to merit two selections. But the game is in Philadelphia, and the locals got the vote out.

In the West, the abundance of talent is overwhelming, with the exception of the one slot that must go to a reserve center. So, to maximize the talent on the West roster, make Dallas' Dirk Nowitzki, as much a center as any of Dallas' primary starters, the reserve at that position.

To round out the mandatory positional selections, it should be Karl Malone and Peja Stojakovic at forward and Payton and Steve Nash at guard.

That leaves two positions up for grabs, with Elton Brand and Doug Christie the choices here over Chris Webber, Michael Finley, Rasheed Wallace and Stephon Marbury.

Omitting Webber is difficult -- he is, after all, the best player on the best team in the league -- but he also has missed 23 games, more than half the Kings' schedule. Skipping Wallace and Marbury is easier because they are as much at the root of their teams' problems as they are of any part of their success.

STILL `BIGS'

Tim Hardaway still has it.

After Greg Buckner fouled out of Dallas' victory over Houston on Tuesday, Donnie Nelson, filling in for his father Don Nelson as coach, debated whether to insert Hardaway.

Initially against the move, the younger Nelson was talked into it by veteran assistant Del Harris.

Hardaway, 1 of 8 from the field to that point, promptly buried a 3-pointer to make it 104-100 on the way to a 113-107 victory.

"They said he's got the heart of a lion, stick him in there," the younger Nelson said. "And I listened to my guys and I'm glad I did, because he made probably the back-breaking three of the game."

ROLLING ON

How good are the Mavericks? They went into the weekend 11-1 in the absence of injured guard Michael Finley.

How good is the tandem of Nowitzki and Nash? They have allowed Dallas to get off to the franchise's best start, despite the juggling of 20 different starting lineups this season.

How woeful is Nowitzki with his shaved head? "He'll be single a long time with that look," Don Nelson said.

How many assistant coaches do the Mavericks now have? Make it 13, with the latest addition, Sary Benzvi, who is of Chinese descent, brought into to work with center Wang Zhizhi.

But what was the best news last week for the team? Breast-cancer surgery on Don Nelson's wife, Joy, successfully caught all traces of the disease, according to Donnie Nelson.

STILL GOT GAME

Charles Oakley said he was impressed with Rod Strickland's play in Tuesday's loss to the Heat. And the Bulls' power forward said that in today's NBA, that is enough. "People say he's got a bad attitude, this and that," Oakley said. "The way I see it, everybody's got a bad attitude. So that's the life of the NBA right now. He's still one of the best point guards in the league, pound for pound."

To Oakley, Chicago is a lost cause. "We're not an elite team," Oakley said. "You're going to win a game here or there, but don't fool yourself. It isn't like we're going to win six or seven in a row." ...

Ron Artest sounds like the latest Bull who's had enough, of, well, all the bull in Chicago. "I've been here three years and I've been losing for three years," the defensively skilled forward said. "I feel it's my fault, all of this, because I should be doing more."

`KOLO' FEVER

Little did the Kings know that the pregame routine center Vlade Divac has been leading them in is the Kolo, a traditional folk dance in Yugoslavia. "We just started jumping around and it ended up being the Kolo," Divac said. "I don't think the guys know what they are doing." Said Webber, "I'm down with my European brothers." ...

Noting referee Tony Brothers sporting some fine haberdashery before a recent game, the Celtics' Walker mused, "I didn't know you guys dressed that well." Replied Brothers, "This is from all the fine money we get." Apparently Mark Cuban is dressing them down and then dressing them back up. ...

Giving up on his hair apparently is easier than giving up on a trusty pair of sneakers for Dallas' Nowitzki. Because of that, the German forward frantically was attempting to glue a shoe back together before last Tuesday's game in Houston. "I've done pretty good with this pair," he said. ...

Department of Duh: Timberwolves rookie center Loren Woods was unable to accompany the team Thursday from Detroit to Toronto because he lacked a passport or even a driver's license. His license was sent express to him and he caught up with the team later in the day, fined for missing practice.

LIMITED HORIZONS

With the Magic for sale and relocation a possibility but not a probability, Orlando coach Doc Rivers insists he is committed to the franchise -- to a degree. "I'll go on record as saying if this team moves to Afghanistan, I won't be going," Rivers said. "We'll let Geraldo coach the team." ...

Cavaliers coach John Lucas said oft-injured center Zydrunas Ilgauskas is not playing like himself right now. "He's not Z," Lucas said. "He's X and Y." ...

With last week's 92-81 loss to Phoenix, the Bucks have lost five in a row and 20 of 22 to the Suns. The loss afforded Milwaukee's Anthony Mason his latest opportunity to vent. "We've got post players," the former Heat forward said. "They go small, we don't take advantage. We don't go inside. Post it. When they go small, kill them inside." ...

Mentioned as a possible in-season successor to interim Knicks coach Don Chaney, longtime coach and current broadcaster Mike Fratello downplayed the speculation. "I just think there are so many games left," said Fratello, off the sidelines since being dismissed in Cleveland in 1999. "Most of the teams that have openings have been loyal to their present coach, trying to give them a chance to succeed." ...

A series of migraines continues to torment the Rockets' Francis. "He's been miserable," coach Rudy Tomjanovich said. "He doesn't know from one day to the next how he's going to feel."

ROSE BY ANY NAME

This third-person stuff is getting out of hand. Asked if the Pacers could afford to trade him, forward Jalen Rose responded, "You look at our team, how can you afford to trade Jalen Rose?" Jalen Rose asked. "I'm going to retire here," Jalen Rose added of Jalen Rose. ...

Recent losses to the Grizzlies, Heat, Nuggets and Clippers have the Lakers wondering whether all is not so perfect in their world. "In our business," General Manager Mitch Kupchak said, "the next important date that comes to mind is the trade deadline." ...

Among the reasons Marc Jackson might last the season with the Warriors is that he retains right of refusal on any trade until Oct. 19. Considering the second-year center only wants to go to Indiana, Orlando or Memphis, Golden State could wind up better off waiting and dealing him on its own terms. ...

Lacking much else in the middle, the Wizards have expressed reluctance to part with rookie center Brendan Haywood or veteran center Jahidi White. ...

The Cavaliers inquired with the Trail Blazers last week about the availability of Wallace and were rebuffed.

BY THE NUMBERS

With his second assist Friday against Toronto, Minnesota forward Kevin Garnett passed Pooh Richardson (1,973) for the franchise's all-time assist record and now stands atop the Timberwolves' charts in scoring, rebounding and assists. ...

Reggie Miller's points are down because his shots are down. At midweek, the Pacers guard was averaging 1.51 points per field-goal attempt. It is not far off the best efficiency of his career, 1.59 points per shot in 1990-91. By contrast, Iverson, the NBA's leading scorer, was averaging 1.11 points per shot and the Lakers' O'Neal 1.35 points per shot. ...

The Grizzlies' game last Monday in Sacramento was the 500th in franchise history. Through the first 500, they were a sizzling 113-387. ...

Utah went into the weekend 1-9 against the top five teams in the Western Conference standings: 0-3 vs. San Antonio, 0-2 vs. the Lakers, 0-2 vs. Minnesota, 0-1 vs. Sacramento and 1-1 vs. Dallas.