Yao Makes All-Star Splash

Yao Ming’s commercials are popular, his story is well-chronicled in national magazines, and on Friday the NBA’s most popular rookie got his first taste of All-Star attention.

Cameras lined up two deep in a ballroom to await his arrival at an interview session in Atlanta, creating such a logjam that a path had to be cleared through the flashes just to get him to a table where he could begin answering questions.

“This is just one element of the pressure I’m in. This is really special,” Yao said, sporting a dark basketball shirt with Chinese lettering on the front.

“Everything is happening too rapidly, too fast.”

That’s the understatement of the first half of the NBA season for the 7-foot-6 Houston Rocket center, who beat out Shaquille O’Neal to be the starting center for the West.

“I still believe I am a blue collar among the All-Stars,” Yao said through an interpreter while resting his chin on his hands.

“I still think the greatest excitement is to be selected to the All-Star team. Nothing can be more exciting than that.”

Well, maybe starting. Yao, who has shown his humor throughout his first three months of his NBA adventure, also displayed humility. His numbers, 13 points and eight rebounds a game, don’t match up to O’Neal’s 26 and 11.

“As far as performance, people can see the difference between me and Shaq,” he said.

*

Tracy McGrady made another offer to give up his starting spot in Sunday’s All-Star game to Michael Jordan, who’s making his 14th and what is expected to be his final appearance.

Jordan skipped Friday’s media availability, so McGrady said he and his East teammates will try to talk Jordan into it at today’s practice.

Jordan has already said thanks, but no thanks, to McGrady and Allen Iverson.

But McGrady will give it another shot.

“I hope he does, I think it will be great, not only for myself but for the fans as well, and for the game,” McGrady said.

“He opened a lot of doors for guys like myself and other guys. It’s all about respect and ‘Thank you.’ ”

McGrady’s distant cousin and former teammate Vince Carter was picked to start by the fans, even though knee problems have limited him to 15 games this season.

Carter, like Jordan a former star at North Carolina, has taken a different approach, disagreeing with those who say he is the one who should forfeit the starting role.

“There are a lot of guys who could step aside,” Carter said. “I feel I owe these fans. They had enough belief in me and felt I should be out there as a starter.”

*

Today’s festivities include the Rookie Challenge, a game between first-year and second-year players, the Skills Challenge, three-point shootout and the dunk contest. The Skills Challenge is a new event, featuring four players competing against the clock while shooting, passing and dribbling through various stations on the court.

Golden State’s Jason Richardson, the defending champ in the dunk contest, is back, and his main competition is expected to be rookie Amare Stoudemire of Phoenix.

The dunk contest judges will be Jordan, Julius Erving, Dominique Wilkins, Dee Brown and Spud Webb.