"So now, Timberwolves forward Kevin Love and every other remaining All-Star Game hopeful waits for NBA coaches to cast their ballots for the Feb. 26 game's reserves to be announced Thursday night on TNT.

In this strange, condensed season, there's a very good chance Dallas' Dirk Nowitzki won't be invited and Memphis' Marc Gasol or Utah's Paul Millsap will.

"I think you're going to have to take everything into consideration because it's a different year," New Jersey coach Avery Johnson said before Friday's 108-105 loss to the Wolves. "You don't have as many games to evaluate. It's going to a combination of what they've done this year, and I'm assuming coaches also are going to take into consideration a player's body of work."

Wolves coach Rick Adelman will consider such matters before his ballot is due Tuesday.

"That's something I hadn't started thinking about until the starters were announced [on Thursday], and now you've got to make a decision," he said. "It's a hard one because some of these guys have been at a high level for so long, but you can't overlook a guy who's having a great year, especially if their team is having success.

"In your mind, Dirk's always been an All-Star. I have to look at the other people, go out and make decisions based on that.""