Nash, Stoudemire both on All-NBA first team
NEW YORK (AP) - Phoenix Suns guard Steve Nash was a unanimous selection to
the All-NBA team and was joined by teammate Amare Stoudemire.
Dallas forward Dirk Nowitzki, San Antonio forward Tim Duncan and Los Angeles
Lakers guard Kobe Bryant, the league's leading scorer, rounded out the first
team, announced Wednesday by the league.
Nash received 129 first-place votes and 645 total points from the panel of
129 media members.
Two-time defending NBA MVP Nash and Stoudemire are the first teammates to
make the first team since Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal in 2003-04.
Stoudemire's selection caps an impressive comeback after a pair of knee
operations limited him to three games in 2005-06. The center averaged 20.4
points and a career-best 9.6 rebounds for the Pacific Division champions.
Nash led the NBA in assists during the regular season with a career-high 11.6
per game. He became the first NBA player to average at least 18 points (18.6)
and 11 assists since Magic Johnson in 1990-91.
Former teammate Nowitzki, also making his third straight first-team
appearance, led the Mavericks to an NBA-best 67-15 record. But he struggled in
the playoffs, and the Mavericks became the third No. 1 seed to lose in the
first round since the playoffs expanded to 16 teams and the first since the
opening round became a best-of-seven in 2003.
Cleveland's LeBron James, the top vote-getter for last year's All-NBA team,
dropped to the second team this season. He was joined by Washington's Gilbert
Arenas, Houston's Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming, and Toronto's Chris Bosh.
The third team was: Miami's Dwyane Wade, Detroit's Chauncey Billups,
Minnesota's Kevin Garnett, Denver's Carmelo Anthony and Orlando's Dwight
Howard.
The voting panel of writers and broadcasters in the United States and Canada
voted for the three teams by position, with points awarded on a 5-3-1 basis.
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