Those people.

Like he was talking about lab animals.

Those mice. Those gnats. Those rats.

Teammate Scottie Pippen was only slightly less disdainful.

"How long do you want to stay in Utah?" he told reporters.

Nonetheless, the Jazz kept the series respectable. They didn't own the court, but they certainly owned Utah, week after week.

Strangers became friends. Stores emptied when games were played.

Friends I hadn't seen since high school called to see if I could get them tickets. Conversely, another said he and his wife purposely made restaurant reservations during games. That way a table by the window was guaranteed.

For most Utahns, though, game night was an obsession. Late into the night, cars cruised 300 West — now John Stockton Drive — with passengers howling deliriously. People painted their driveways Jazz colors. Thousands welcomed the team home to the executive airport.

Being a Jazz fan was mandatory if you wanted conversation.

It was then the Jazz became the undisputed darlings of the state of Utah, everyone's favorite team.

Even though they lost.

Sure, winning would have been nice. But this was Utah, the pretty great state.

With only a pretty great team.

· · · · ·

Yes, referee Dick Bavetta flubbed those shot-clock calls in Game 6. But Michael Jordan had a lot to do with it, too. In fact, everything to do with it.

He stole the ball from Malone late in the game, while an entire state screamed, "Behind you! Behind you! LOOK OUT BEHIND YOU!"

Then he laced the jumper.

What many Jazz fans don't recall is that Stockton had a decent look on a 3-point try at the buzzer, but it was short. Yet Malone has taken the blame in the years since. It's true he lost the ball down the stretch. But he also scored 31 points, got 11 rebounds and made nine of 11 free throws.

Stockton had a sub-par, 10-point, five-assist night and made one of two free throws.

That's how it goes sometimes.

Perception eclipses reality.

So for the second straight time — third counting the Utes — Utah was second-best.

Which was fine with everyone, right?

"No, no, no, it stinks," insisted backup center Greg Foster, when asked if second place was good enough. "It's sad because . . . you know . . . it would have been icing on the cake with a cherry on top. We've been through a lot of BS this year, and we stood strong through it all, and this would have been a nice cap on it."

But looking back, you know what?

It was pretty great entertainment, even at that.

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E-mail: rock@desnews.com