If nothing else, the characters are in place for a hilarious promotion: a 1.8-Second Night Reunion. Scottie Pippen can pout in his chair and refuse to re-enter the game. John Paxson and B.J. Armstrong can try to talk sense into him, nudge him toward the court. The sage, John Bach, can walk over and remind him of the harsh ramifications of a playoff sitdown strike.

And afterward, in a locker room so quiet that only the pelting of shower water is heard, Bill Cartwright can spill angry tears while laying into Pippen. "Scottie, I can't believe you would let us come so far, to bust our asses, and then be so selfish,'' he will bark in a re-enactment of his May 1994 speech at the old Stadium. "I've never seen anything like it. It's totally unacceptable.''