Chapter 97: Star Whistle, Rookie Whistle, Home Whistle

The Lakers' offense lit up the crowd, with fans jumping outta their seats and clapping like crazy.

As they hustled back on defense, Kobe yelled to Alaric, "Yo, gimme the rock, I got this!"

Alaric was all set to take on the old-timer John one-on-one, and Kobe was feeling good about his matchup too. Jazz sub David Benoit, 32 years old, 6'6", 220 pounds, came into the NBA undrafted and was just okay. In '98, he went overseas for a couple of years 'cause of the lockout and came back this season on a minimum deal with the Jazz.

When the Jazz had the ball, David got it but Kobe was all over him. He was clearly looking to pass to John, but Alaric's sticky defense got him a sweet steal!

Alaric took off, leaving John in the dust for a fast break. Just before the three-point line, he drew Donyell's defense and lobbed the ball towards the hoop. Devean cut in from the left, pointing up with one hand.

Devean flew, grabbed the ball with both hands, and slammed it down, hanging on the rim with his legs kicking before dropping down.

29 to 31, Alaric's third assist.

The Lakers were pumped, and Jerry called a timeout.

Heading to the bench, Lakers players were high-fiving like crazy. The vets were especially hyped for Alaric, with Ron even tossing him a towel.

Ron knew this season was his last before hanging it up. Alaric was a beast on offense and held his own on defense, rarely getting burned, though his height was a bit of a drawback.

Phil quickly went over the game plan without making any subs.

Jerry swapped Karl Malone in for Donyell, bringing in a solid scorer.

Karl, the league's top enforcer, played every game last season, averaging 35.9 minutes, 25.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 3.7 assists, shooting 50.9%. At 37, he was still the main guy.

Karl immediately took on Devean one-on-one, turned, and scored, steadying the ship for the team. 29 to 33.

On the Lakers' next possession, Alaric ignored Kobe's call for the ball and ran a pick-and-roll with Shaquille. Drawing Karl's defense, he dished it to the middle. Shaquille easily muscled past John, cut to the basket, and went up strong against Greg Ostertag.

Greg fouled him, sending him to the line, racking up two fouls in just a few minutes.

Shaquille hit one of two free throws, making it 30 to 33. During the dead ball, the Lakers swapped Devean for Horace to match up against Karl, as Devean couldn't handle the power forward spot against Karl.

The Jazz also subbed out Greg Ostertag, making it easier for Shaquille in the paint. Phil decided to keep Shaquille in for the rest of the quarter due to his clear advantage.

Danny Manning, who just came in, stood 6'8" and weighed 230 pounds, not exactly a powerhouse for a power forward. To guard Shaquille, Karl had to step up. If Shaquille could draw fouls and take Karl out, the Lakers would be golden.

So, the Lakers shifted their offense to the low post. Alaric hung out beyond the three-point line, only taking one three-pointer in the latter half, which he missed.

On defense, Alaric was a beast, shutting down John. After passing the ball, John rarely got it back, thanks to Alaric's tight defense and quick moves.

The Jazz only put up 16 points this quarter, and the Lakers led 42 to 40 at halftime.

Phil was stoked with Alaric's first-half performance and kept him on the court for the third quarter with the OK duo.

With Ron and Rick struggling and Robert Horry and Derek out with injuries, Alaric's presence was clutch for the Lakers' outside shooting, giving them the spacing they needed. Today, Alaric was the man for the Lakers.

Derek, chilling at home after surgery, watched the game and felt all kinds of frustrated, thinking the spotlight should've been his. He believed he was the best fill-in for Ron, and Alaric was just riding a wave of dumb luck.

The Jazz's game plan was to single-cover Alaric and Kobe while double-teaming Shaquille down low, leaving the other two role players wide open. On offense, they went after Alaric with pick-and-rolls.

John's role was clear. Despite being a 6-foot-tall white dude, he had made the All-Defensive Team multiple times. His defensive instincts were top-notch, and he used sneaky tricks to make up for his lack of close defense.

Alaric had a tough time shaking off John. The best way to deal with him was off-ball movement, using speed and endurance to wear him out. But Phil's strategy had Alaric just standing on one side, giving John a breather.

What really ticked Alaric off were John's sneaky moves, like pulling, pushing, and tripping him with his legs, which the refs always ignored. On offense, John nailed two mid-range shots, both after shoving Alaric to create space, with no calls from the refs.

Rookies often get the short end of the stick against stars because NBA whistles aren't always fair.

NBA rules are detailed and clear, and refs are super professional, but human factors still play a role. Refs consider the crowd's emotions and the NBA's market promotion.

John's fame got him favorable calls from refs who didn't want to see him get shut down by Alaric. On the flip side, rookies often get "targeted" by refs.

As a last-pick rookie, Alaric's defensive struggles weren't surprising.

Home-court calls favored Shaquille and Kobe, not Alaric.

Then there were balancing calls. If a ref realized a previous call was wrong, they'd often make a compensatory call on the other end, blowing a minor foul to even things out. The player on the receiving end would usually just shrug and accept their bad luck.

When John played against Alaric, the balancing calls favored Kobe, who got sent to the free-throw line twice for relatively mild contact.

This quarter, with Shaquille double-teamed, Kobe stepped up to keep the Lakers' offense rolling, shooting 4 of 10 and making 7 of 7 free throws, scoring 15 points.

Alaric missed both of his shots this quarter, cooling off. His only stat was an assist to Kobe for a 2+1 layup. He got subbed out by Ron in the last 4 minutes, who also didn't do much, racking up two fouls after coming on.

The worst performer this quarter was Isaiah, who played 7 minutes, missed all three shots, including two wide-open three-pointers.

The Lakers led 67 to 61 going into the fourth quarter, with a slim lead. Horace had five fouls, and Shaquille and Alaric had four each, all thanks to Karl and John's pick-and-rolls, as they were masters at creating mismatches.

Alaric had no choice but to foul Karl to stop him from cutting to the basket, as it would be too late to foul once Karl got there.

Jerry was the league's best pick-and-roll coach, sticking to this strategy religiously. This was the Jazz's winning formula but also the reason they couldn't win a championship, as opponents easily figured out their routine.

Alaric, bogged down by fouls, sat on the bench, unable to replicate his earlier stellar performance.

Ron was in a slump, scoring no points previously. Phil was forced to sub in another vet, Brian, to play point guard, leading to a stalemate between the teams.