NBA ALL STAR NOTES\All-Star feud put on hold\Kidd, Karl agree spat is no big deal.

Byline: Marc Stein Daily News Staff Writer

George Karl and Jason Kidd arrived in the Alamo City unwilling to fight.

Both insisted Friday that their recent verbal sparring will not spill over into the NBA's 46th All-Star Game here Sunday, when Karl, as coach of the West, will have control of Kidd's minutes.

The flap unfolded when Karl - livid that Kidd and Houston's Clyde Drexler were voted in as the West's starting guards while his quarterback, Gary Payton, failed to finish in the top 10 in fan balloting - proclaimed: "I see John Stockton and Gary Payton as a helluva lot better than him."

Kidd responded by scorching the Sonics for 36 points last week.

The combatants actually met by chance in an elevator Friday afternoon, but the Dallas whiz was admittedly afraid to ask about playing time.

"I really don't think Gary is in the middle of it, because there's really nothing there," Kidd said of Payton, a West reserve and one of his best friends. "Everyone has their own opinions. George has the right as any coach does to voice his opinion, but it doesn't hurt me.

"He protected Gary and that's what a coach is supposed to do. I think Coach (Dick) Motta would do the same thing in that situation, but maybe he wouldn't have said it in the newspaper."

Karl said: "I wasn't being offensive to Jason. I have no problem with him. He's wonderful. He's one of my favorite young players in the game. I was just sticking up for Gary and John, which I'll do for the next four or five years or until Stockton retires. I respect guys who have earned their greatness."

Karl's plan is to give Kidd and Payton two stints each at point guard, with a third going to the guy playing the best.

"That's my boy, and he's always going to be my boy," Payton said of Kidd. "I can't change what Coach Karl said, but Jason's a great player. He and Brian Shaw are my best (friends) in the NBA."

Barry's tone: L.A.'s lone representative at All-Star Weekend is Clippers rookie Brent Barry, who wore a look of awe as he scanned the ballroom where all the game's biggest names gathered to meet the media.

"It's unbelievable," Barry said. "It's really overwhelming. But it's a lot of fun. I'm just as excited as a fan would be."

Barry is participating in two events today. First, he'll join Sacramento's Tyus Edney on the West squad in the Rookie Game. He'll then become the first Clipper to compete in the slam-dunk contest, but Barry has already been dealt some bad luck.

"I've got to go first, which is kind of a death wish," said Barry, who'll be slamming against Philadelphia's Jerry Stackhouse, New York's Doug Christie, Phoenix's Michael Finley, Boston's Greg Minor and Orlando's Darrell Armstrong.

"They tend not to give high scores early. The judges like to wait for something to happen."

Magic's kingdom: As promised, Magic Johnson is here as a fan, but he didn't leave his work at home. The Lakers' new sixth man, who has dropped from 252 pounds to about 245 as he continues to get in shape, is practicing daily with touring-team pal Lester Conner at a nearby gym they're renting.

"I'll be playing, but not in the All-Star Game," Magic assured.

Commissioner's corner: In his annual state-of-the-league address, NBA boss David Stern addressed a variety of topics.

The arena situation in L.A.

"I think there is a need, over time, for additional buildings in Los Angeles. I would think that drawing 12,000 people is not necessarily a function of (the) Forum, it's that they have not been delivering the types of teams their fans have gotten used to. . . . The time will come soon for us to consider the shape of the buildings in Los Angeles in the next few years."

The viability of Mexico City as a future NBA city.

"At this point, we should allow our league to grow within itself and not really consider expansion before the turn of the century. But Mexico City has always been one city that we focused on. . . . I can say that the level of enthusiasm has somewhat diminished by the devaluation of the peso. . . . I think we need more time to see what the economic conditions will be in Mexico without hobbling the team that we would put there."

Dennis Rodman's charge that Eastern Conference coaches conspired to keep him out of the All-Star Game.

"I can assure Dennis that there is no conspiracy. . . . Dennis is a very interesting person and actually has developed a significant international following and I am kind of sorry that he is not on the team for a lot of reasons, but that is the way it came out."

Stern added that the NBA has established a May 1 deadline to determine the feasibility of forming a women's league.

Notes: Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley blew off Friday's media session, reportedly to play golf. Hakeem Olajuwon arrived late after his flight was delayed. . . . Charlotte's George Zidek, the other local product (UCLA) in today's Rookie Game, fielded questions in his native Czech during the media session. . . . Lakers special assistant coach Kurt Rambis is in town working for NBC's Inside Stuff, but the Lakers have no formal All-Star Weekend participant. In fact, the access badge given to Lakers public relations assistant Raymond Ridder features a Clippers logo.

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Shaquille O'Neal is the center of attention during a news conference for the NBA All-Star Game to be played Sunday in San Antonio. Associated Press