Van Gundy is gutsier than we thought

By Brendan Hall
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

Three nights after Stan Van Gundy took some criticism for playing his star point guard Jameer Nelson too many minutes -- in his first action since February -- the Orlando Magic head coach comes back with an even bigger twist.

Thursday night, I suggested that Nelson got too many minutes, and just enough time to make the enigmatic Rafer "Skip 2 My Lou" Alston unnerved. Team leader, model citizen or not, you can't just throw a guy into the fire on his first game back, especially if it's the NBA Finals. That's how you screw up chemistry (and it's also classic "Ewing Theory" in action). I was talking about this with St. Mark's coach David Lubick over coffee Friday afternoon, and he suggested something different: you need Nelson in the lineup to some extent, because a flashy player like Alston is not a guy you want making decisions down the stretch.

Van Gundy apparently agrees with the both of us. Alston got about 10 more minutes than Nelson; but for the last six or seven minutes of the fourth quarter, and all of overtime, both sat on the bench. Van Gundy went with a bold, unorthodox move of putting Dwight Howard, Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu, Mickael Pietrus and J.J. Redick on the floor. Redick played the one, while Turkoglu manned the three spot in a "point forward" role (Phil Pressey, anyone?).

When Pietrus fouled out, Van Gundy replaced him with rookie Courtney Lee.

Literally, Van Gundy put the ball in the hands of his most consistent playmaker. If you're a fan of Malcolm Gladwell, you probably think this lineup gave them the best chance. It almost pulled through for them, too, until Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol took over in the extra frame to take a 101-96 win and 2-0 series lead.

As for the Lakers starting five...the more and more I watch this lineup of Bryant, Gasol, Derek Fisher, Trevor Ariza and Andrew Bynum, the more I love it. Lamar Odom played 45 minutes off the bench tonight, and was 8 of 9 from the floor, as Bynum (five fouls) and Ariza (3 for 13 fg) struggled. Gasol (7 of 14, 24 points, 10 rebounds) was crucial in the overtime period, scoring seven points. When you have a guy as foul-prone as Bynum, having Odom as your first guy off the bench -- playing alongside Ariza and Gasol in the frontcourt -- allows you to play big like few other teams in the league can.

Call me stupid, but I still think this series is going to go at least six games. This is turning into a great chess match between two of the game's top basketball minds, and this is hardly the last trick in Van Gundy's sleeve. Phil Jackson is, of course, Phil Jackson. I don't think a whole lot of rhetoric needs to be said at this point.