David J. Phillip / AP

Magic point guard Rafer Alston drives past Los Angeles' Derek Fisher in the second half of Orlando's 108-104 victory Tuesday night. Alston finished with 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting.

Even before that first cup of pregame joe, Van Gundy conducted his own heat check, calling Alston into his office.

"He wanted me to be aggressive," Alston later explained. "He thought I wasn't my happy-go-lucky self."

Said Van Gundy, "I'm a motivational genius, that's what I am. I said, 'Play your game.'"

From there, there were times when Van Gundy had to reel in Alston, such as during one third-quarter break, when the Magic coach implored, "Rafer, simple! Solid and simple! Solid and simple!"

Solid and simple, of course, mostly is an abstract to Alston, which is why the Rockets decided at midseason that even whippet-like, itty-bitty Aaron Brooks was a more reliable option for a playoff run of their own.

So Alston was shipped to the Magic, the perfect injury replacement for Nelson.

But not the perfect complement.

Having bestowed a major extension upon Nelson, Smith had decided that the best competition at point guard entering the season was no competition. He wanted Nelson to feel in control of his situation both off the court as on the court, so career backup Anthony Johnson and relative neophyte Mike Wilks were the only fallbacks.

You typically can find more in reserve in the D-League.

"I thought Jameer needed to play without having somebody over his shoulder," Smith said. "That was important."

Thing is, Smith soon could be thinking the same again.

While Alston has another year left on his contract, and while Alston was the superior contributor Tuesday, Nelson is the future, an All-Star sidetracked this season only by ailment.

So there, in the Magic locker room before the game, sat Nelson and inactive point guard Tyronn Lue in one corner, with Alston seated, caffeinating, leg-pumping, gabbing in the other.

Alston is an outsider who well could be relocated next season, perhaps to his preferred Miami, where he still keeps a home from what remains his most productive NBA stop.

"He's been great, just great; what we needed," Van Gundy said. "He still can have his moments, but honestly, and I told Otis this, I don't know where we'd be without him."

And yet, there remains those Skip slips that still unnerve.

Why, for example, was he straying from Derek Fisher on the 3-pointer that pulled the Lakers within 95-93 deep in Tuesday's fourth quarter?

Then again, with Alston, why ask why?

He cannot be a stay-at-home defender because that would require standing still. So, foolishly, he also challenged Fisher's 3-point attempt with Lakers down four with just over a second remaining. Nothing good could have come from that.

Skip does not do "still" very well.

He also does not tend to stay in one place very long.

While the Magic have not announced any plans for championship parades, as the Lakers already have, any procession could end with Alston remaining on the move.

So he'll savor the memories of games such as Tuesday, as well as his 26-point performance in the pivotal Game 4 victory in the Eastern Conference finals against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Then he'll skip town, a street-ball legend who has established unexpected big-game street cred this postseason.

More news

Nathan Denette / AP

Kobe's shot lifts Lakers

Kobe Bryant hit a baseline jump shot with 4.2 seconds left and the Los Angeles Lakers wrapped up a six-game road trip by holding on to beat the Raptors 94-92 on Sunday, their eighth victory in nine meetings with Toronto

Rondo's triple-double carries Celtics over Bulls

  Rajon Rondo recorded a triple-double with 32 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds to lead the Boston Celtics to a 95-91 win Sunday over the Chicago Bulls, who were without star guard Derrick Rose.

Headlines

• Label

PBT: Howard wants ball, and he's angry

CSN: Wall finds lesson in losing to superstars

First black NBA player gets honor at Hawks game

PBT: Will Ferrell to do All-Star intros? We 'Like' idea

Interactive: Who will be MVP this season?

Vote: Which team will win 2011-12 NBA title?

Interactive: Is LeBron the most-hated athlete?

Opinion: Knicks' Lin already inspiring others