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Derek Fisher

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Derek Fisher (born August 9, 1974 in Little Rock, Arkansas) is a NBA player for the Golden State Warriors. He went to the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Fisher was selected 24th overall in the 1996 NBA draft by the Los Angeles Lakers, and spent his first eight seasons with the Lakers. He averaged double digits in points in three different seasons (2000-2001, 2001-2002, and 2002-2003) and won three consecutive NBA Championships with the team. An underrated part of the supporting cast behind superstars Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, Fisher played a vital contribution to the 2000-2001 playoff run, which the Lakers stormed through with an NBA record 15-1 mark.

However, Fisher's finest playoff hour came in Game 5 of the 2003-2004 Western Conference Semifinals between the Lakers and the defending champion San Antonio Spurs. With the series tied at two games apiece Game 5 was a tight affair, neither team willing to give the other the lead in the series -- particularly not the Spurs, as Game 5 was on their home court. With 11 seconds remaining, Kobe Bryant hit a jump shot to put the Lakers up 72-71. The Spurs, needing last-minute heroics, thought they got it when Tim Duncan somehow made an 18 foot shot despite falling away from the basket and despite solid defense by Shaquille O'Neal. The Spurs led 73-72, but Duncan left 0.4 on the clock when his shot dropped, giving the Lakers one last chance. After a couple of time-outs, Gary Payton found Fisher, who managed to catch, turn and fire a shot off within the allotted 0.4 seconds to win the game. Fisher sprinted off the court in apparent delight -- although he later revealed he did so to end the game as swiftly as possible in order to avoid the referees ruling the play after the buzzer (the play was reviewed as per NBA regulations and deemed good).

The play was even more remarkable considering the Lakers boasted an unparallelled lineup of superstars on court at the time in O'Neal, Bryant, Payton and Karl Malone -- all considered future Hall of Famers. But coach Phil Jackson drew up the final play for the comparatively unheralded Fisher instead. He was nicknamed "The Fish that Saved L.A." for the play.

The Lakers went on to close out the series with the Spurs in six games and defeat the Minnesota Timberwolves for an NBA Finals place. The Lakers were upset in the finals by the Detroit Pistons. That memorable season was Fisher's last with the Lakers. On July 16, 2004, he signed with the Golden State Warriors as a free agent.

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