NEW YORK, 26 December 2003 — Toronto Raptors forward Vince Carter remained the leader in fan voting for the NBA All-Star Game after the second returns were announced here on Wednesday.
Carter, the top vote-getter three of the last four seasons, has 1,134,147 votes. He has joined Michael Jordan and Julius Erving as the only players to lead in votes three or more times.
Detroit Pistons center Ben Wallace, last season’s Defensive Player of the Year, remained second overall and has the biggest lead at a position. Wallace has 995,572 votes, more than 700,000 in front of New Jersey’s Alonzo Mourning.
Mourning was released from the hospital earlier this week after undergoing a kidney transplant. While he has not ruled out a possible comeback, it will not be soon as he must wait to be certain his body does not reject the new kidney.
Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant is third overall and tops the Western Conference with 936,281 votes despite being the subject of a sexual assault trial involving a teenaged woman in Colorado.
Bryant’s teammate Shaquille O’Neal has collected 835,3331 votes while Houston’s Yao Ming is the only other Western Conference center with more than 123,000. The Chinese star, a starter last year, has 693,272 votes.
Yao’s teammate Steve Francis is second among Western Conference guards with 465,982.
Philadelphia 76ers guard Allen Iverson, who is sidelined with a knee injury, is fourth overall with 927,769 votes.
Orlando’s Tracy McGrady is second among backcourt men in the East with 655,560, while New Jersey Nets point guard Jason Kidd has 596,906.
San Antonio’s Tim Duncan, last season’s NBA Most Valuable Player, has 885,872 votes to lead forwards in the West. Minnesota’s Kevin Garnett is right behind with 877,622, more than 500,000 atop Germany’s Dirk Nowitzki of Dallas.
Indiana’s Jermaine O’Neal holds down the second forward spot in the East with 872,476. Voting continues through January 18. Starters will be announced January 29. The 53rd NBA All-Star Game will be played in Los Angeles on Feb. 15.
