New York ? Yao Ming is in the running to be an All-Star starter, trailing Shaquille O’Neal by fewer than 10,000 votes to be the starting center in the Western Conference.

With balloting available in Mandarin for the first time this year, Yao has 471,107 votes in results released Thursday, just 9,787 behind O’Neal.

Yao, the top pick in the NBA draft, is averaging 12.7 points and 7.7 rebounds in his first year in the NBA from China.

Kobe Bryant leads all players with 659,998 votes even though the three-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers are 10-17 this season. Bryant’s 26.1 points per game average is third-best in the league.

Toronto’s Vince Carter leads the Eastern Conference in voting despite missing more than half of the season with knee injuries. Carter has played in just 10 of 25 games, and his average of 19.2 points per game is more than five points below his career average.

Still, the Raptors forward has 597,684 votes as of Thursday. The two-time All-Star has been the league’s leading vote-getter the past two seasons. Orlando’s Tracy McGrady, who leads the league in scoring with 29.3 points per game, is second in the Eastern Conference and third overall with 573,638.

Present voting totals would also have Philadelphia guard Allen Iverson, Orlando forward Grant Hill and Detroit center Ben Wallace starting for the Eastern Conference.

San Antonio forward Tim Duncan, Minnesota forward Kevin Garnett and Houston guard Steve Francis would round out the Western Conference’s starting five if present voting totals hold.