Karl to put Nowitzki in West lineup

West coach George Karl said before tonight's game against San Antonio that he expects to start Dirk Nowitzki Sunday in the All-Star Game.

"My gut feeling is I would choose either Chauncey or Dirk, and to be honest with you I'd probably lean towards Dirk," said Karl, who will coach the West all-stars.

According to the Denver Post, Karl cited the game being in Dallas as the reason why.

"Yeah, the karma of the game is 100,000 people," Karl said. "I think it would be good to give Dallas a representative. They've had a good year."

The coach of the respective squads get to pick the replacement starter when a player voted in by the fans can't play because of injury or other reasons.

Kobe Bryant is out for the West and Allen Iverson is out for the East.