Duncan Wins Close MVP Race

San Antonio Spur forward Tim Duncan edged New Jersey Net guard Jason Kidd for NBA most-valuable-player honors Thursday in the fifth-closest finish since the media began voting in 1981.

Duncan received 57 first-place votes and 954 points from a panel of 126 sports writers and broadcasters, while Kidd drew 45 first-place votes and 897 points.

The Lakers’ Shaquille O’Neal was third with 696 points.

The MVP award “was kind of a goal I had in mind,” Duncan said. “It puts a top on the season that we had.”

The 57-point gap was the smallest since Karl Malone beat Alonzo Mourning by 54 after the 1998-99 season. The closest margin was in 1989-90, when Magic Johnson beat Charles Barkley by 22 points.

Duncan set personal bests in scoring average (25.5 points) and rebounding average (12.7) while leading the Spurs to the Midwest Division title and a tie for the league’s second-best record (58-24).

Kidd, in his first year with the Nets, led them to the Atlantic Division title with a 52-30 record, 26 games better than their finish in 2000-01. He averaged 14.7 points, 9.9 assists, and 7.3 rebounds.

O’Neal, the MVP in 1999-2000, was second in the NBA in scoring (27.2) and sixth in rebounding (11.3) while guiding the Lakers to a 58-24 record.

Tracy McGrady (390 points) of the Orlando Magic was fourth in the voting and Kobe Bryant (98) of the Lakers was fifth.

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Portland Trail Blazer guard Damon Stoudamire and his father, Willie, face felony marijuana possession charges while a grand jury considers whether to indict them.

There have been no arrests but two “district attorney’s information” notices were filed in Clackamas County Circuit Court.

Stoudamire and his father appeared in court briefly Thursday for an arraignment, but Judge John Lowe rescheduled the hearing for Tuesday to give defense attorneys and prosecutors time to review an Oregon Court of Appeals ruling just handed down in a similar case. In an unrelated case, the court ruled that a warrantless search of a house with an open door was illegal.

Police were responding to a burglar alarm Feb. 23 when they found about one pound of marijuana at the Lake Oswego home of Stoudamire.

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MVP Voting

Voting for the 2002 NBA most valuable player award, as selected by a panel of the media from the U.S. and Canada (voting done on a 10-7-5-3-1 basis):

*--* Player, Team 1 2 3 4 5 Tot Duncan, SA 57 38 20 5 3 954 Kidd, NJ 45 41 26 9 3 897 O’Neal, Lakers 15 38 40 25 5 696 McGrady, Orl 7 5 28 45 10 390 Bryant, Lakers 1 1 4 15 16 98 Payton, Sea 1 1 1 5 17 54 Webber, Sac - 1 1 5 10 37 Nowitzki, Dal - - 1 4 14 31 Iverson, Phi - - 1 4 12 29 Wallace, Det - - 2 8 8 24 Pierce, Bos - - 1 1 14 22 Garnett, Minn - - - 3 8 17 Jordan, Was - 1 1 1 1 16 Nash, Dal - - - 1 2 5 Stackhouse, Det - - - 1 - 3 Brand, Clippers - - - - 1 1 Bibby, Sac - - - - 1 1 Stojakovic, Sac - - - - 1 1

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