Larry Bird didn't do it. Neither did Magic Johnson. Michael Jordan? Nope.
None of those great and popular players did what Detroit's Grant Hill did - lead the NBA All-Star balloting as a rookie.Hill proved the fans' favorite Thursday when final voting results were announced, with his 1,289,585 votes beating the next closest player - Orlando's Shaquille O'Neal - by 26,134.
Meanwhile, the Utah Jazz tandem of John Stockton and Karl Malone was completely snubbed by the voting fans, and if they are to make the All-Star bench, they will have to be named to the team by its coach.
"I don't - and never have - used it as a barometer of how I'm playing," said Stockton, who finished fourth in the voting among Western guards.
"I put it in the class of President Clinton's taxes," said Malone. "You can't control it. You just deal with it.
"Stuff like that used to bother me. I won't lie," he said. "But when you find out who you are and who it's important to please - my teammates and this organization - then you don't worry about it."
Hill was humble about his feat. "Leading the entire NBA in All-Star voting makes me feel awestruck," Hill said. "I looked forward to making the rookie game this year, and maybe playing in an All-Star game sometime in the future. And now here I am, starting in the All-Star game. To me, it is an honor that should be bestowed upon someone like Joe Dumars, not one of the league's rookies."
Hill missed eight straight games with a foot injury and left Thursday night's game with Phoenix with his arch bothering him again. He's averaged 17.9 points in 26 pro games.
Chosen earlier to play in the rookie game Feb. 11, Hill will play only in the All-Star game - if he's healthy by then.
Other Eastern Conference starters for the Feb. 12 All-Star game at Phoenix are O'Neal at center, Chicago's Scottie Pippen at the other forward spot and Orlando's Anfernee Hardaway and Indiana's Reggie Miller at the guards.
Among the Western Conference starters is one player who doesn't even start for his own team - Phoenix guard Dan Majerle. The Suns' Charles Barkley and Seattle's Shawn Kemp were voted in at forward, Houston's Hakeem Olajuwon at center and Golden State's Latrell Sprewell at the other guard spot.
Orlando's Brian Hill, whose team has the best record in the league, will coach the East All-Stars. The West team will be led by the coach whose team is leading the conference as of Sunday, probably Phoenix's Paul Westphal.
Coaches will select seven All-Star reserves for each team. They will be announced Jan. 31.
Olajuwon, selected to the All-Star team for the 10th time in 11 years, was the leading vote-getter in the West with 1,125,032. San Antonio's David Robinson was the runner-up at center with 1,046,364 votes - the second-highest total in the conference.
Barkley, who led Western forwards with 1,046,105 votes, has been selected eight previous times.
Kemp was a close second among conference forwards with 1,027,451 votes. Third was Dallas' Jamal Mashburn with 742,815. Majerle, who led Western guards with 868,115 votes, will play in his third All-Star game.
He and Barkley will be the first group of teammates to start in an All-Star game on their home court since Malone and Stockton in 1993.