THE LAST MINUTE : Every Little Thing Went Right for Lakers While Clock Ticked

Forty-seven minutes down the drain, 60 seconds to go with everything yet to be decided and a universe of possibilities.

Will anyone remember that the Pistons had a 102-99 lead and Krazy Shirts was about to mark down those “Guaranteed Repeat” tank-tops?

Or that the hero-to-be was shooting 3 for 14 and in danger of going on vacation with 10,000 is-he-through stories to keep him warm?

Or that Joe Dumars, Bill Laimbeer and Chuck Daly were going to go muttering into the night, and A.C. Green, Michael Cooper, Pat Riley and perhaps several million Angelenos were going to be counting their blessings, remembering, wincing, breathing a sigh of relief?

This is how it went:

:52--Byron Scott hits a 15-footer. Pistons, 102-101.

In the Detroit huddle before this play, a CBS microphone picks up Walker D. Russell saying: “One minute and it’s history!”

Question: Who’s Walker D. Russell?

Scott, clumping along at a mere 44% before this game and still to prove himself as a clutch performer in the National Basketball Assn. Finals, made this one, driving right around Isiah Thomas off the top of the circle. On the Pistons’ bench, Daly dropped his head onto his wrist. Riley: “It was a play for Earvin (Johnson) and James (Worthy). James threw it out to B (Scott) and B had to do what he could with the ball.”

Daly: “Yeah I did (think the Pistons had the play shut down). We were in good position. We played very good defense. We were in good position to get the stop. But it didn’t happen.”

:27--Isiah Thomas misses an 18-footer from the left wing. Worthy rebounds.

For a great star, Thomas lives in a world of doubters, but this was the command performance of his career. He was 18 for 31 before this shot, which would have been the capstone of his career, but became only another miss.

You could note that Michael Cooper was on him like a beard on Santa Claus, and that the shot was forced, but Cooper was there before, and Thomas already had limped into position, made one up in midair and sent Cooper to the bench smacking his own forehead more than once Sunday.

Riley: “When he let it go, I thought it had the distance. It hit the heel of the rim. When he let it go, I thought it was good.”

Cooper: “He had just hit a shot like that at the end of the third quarter--very high and all net. Again, I thought I had played excellent defense on that, so I didn’t get too down on myself.

“I don’t think anybody could have done anything with him then. He was kinda unconscious.

“I just tried to get him to take another shot like that. This one missed.”

:14--Abdul-Jabbar, fouled by Laimbeer, makes two free throws. Lakers, 103-102.

Abdul-Jabbar?

He’s 41, he was 3 of 14 and every Laker who played Sunday had a better shooting day, so what was he doing with the ball?

Riley: “Hey, we’ll always . . . go . . . to . . . him . . . always , as long as he’s on the floor.

“We were trying for Earvin and James (on a pick-and-roll) first, but the Pistons took that away. So the plan was draw the defense and kick and post to Cap (in English, pass the ball to the other side of the floor and throw it in to Abdul-Jabbar).

“He’s been there so many times before and I guarantee you, if we go down to the wire Tuesday night, he’s gonna touch the ball again.”

Abdul-Jabbar, as unemotionally as only a man who has faced this situation 10,000 times can be: “I did what I always do. I tend to go through the same routine and hope good things happen.

“Laimbeer plays good position. I took a step outside and went up for the shot. He wanted to block it. He went over my shoulder.”

There was contact.

A lot?

A little?

Laimbeer, taciturnly: “We don’t complain about fouls. Fouls are part of the game. They blow it, it’s a foul.”

:08--Dumars misses a 10-footer, contested by A.C. Green. Scott rebounds.

Thomas collides with Adrian Dantley, as the play starts, and falls, taking him out of it. When will these guys ever stop running into each other? Dumars slides left around Scott, but Green flies at him and Dumars can only slam one off the backboard. Green then swats at Rodman, who can’t control the rebound, which bounces out to Scott.

Daly: “We had either Joe or Zeke (Thomas) going to the basket. He didn’t get a great shot but he got a shot. I thought we had a chance at the rebound and putting it back in but we didn’t accomplish it.”

Green: “He (Dumars) had an open drive to the basket. I don’t know how he got open but he was open, that’s the bottom line.

“What was I thinking? ‘We’re in trouble.’ You’ve got to stop the guy.

“I jumped out at him. When things are going that fast, you can do wondrous things. It really amazes you how far you can get in a split second.

“(Dennis) Rodman was reaching for the rebound. He didn’t have control of it. He was reaching for it with his left hand but I had his right arm.

“What was I doing with it? I was going to take it off. He has to shoot with his right hand. I knew that. There was no way.”

Dumars, who is quiet enough in the best of times, took this one hard.

A writer apologized for having to ask him to repeat his account once more.

“Then don’t,” Dumars said.

:05--Scott misses two free throws, but the Pistons have no timeouts left and can’t get the ball upcourt in time for a last shot.

Riley: “The second miss was a blessing in disguise. What it does, if he makes it, it lets their players run out and they’ve got a chance to hit with 4-5 seconds left. Here Isiah had to come back and get the ball.”

Daly, asked about the used-up timeouts: “When you get injuries, you’ve got to take ‘em and waste ‘em. Normally, I’m on of the best in the business at keeping timeouts. Unfortunately, because of a couple injuries today, that changed the picture. Obviously, I’d like to have had one more.”

Maybe next time. This one’s over.