Rafer Alston on Crunch Time Benching

Skip, like many Magic fans, couldn’t believe he was glued to the bench in the fourth quarter and overtime of Game 4: “Benched for the fourth quarter and overtime, Magic starting point guard Rafer Alston was upset with Stan Van Gundy’s decision to leave him out in the crucial minutes of Orlando’s 99-91 Game 4 loss to the Lakers on Thursday night. Alston was replaced by All-Star Jameer Nelson, who is still rusty and recovering from shoulder surgery. The decision didn’t go over well with Alston. ‘I was shocked. I was shocked,’ Alston said. ‘It’s tough. You’re thinking Coach will come back to you. The first two games I could understand, but again we were right there to win the game. As a player you would like to have your number called.’”