Tasked with guarding one of the wiliest players in the NBA and contributing offensively to his team’s championship run, Derek Fisher came up aces again on Wednesday night.
A swarming Los Angeles Lakers team seized a 2-0 edge in the Western Conference Finals with a 124-112 victory over the Phoenix Suns at the Staples Center.
 Fish gets airborne for two of his seven points (Getty Images). |
Behind the evening’s effort was D-Fish, who, for a seven-minute stretch in the third quarter, was the most efficient player on the court.
With three minutes left in the second, No. 2 hit Andrew Bynum for an assist, and then drained a bucket of his own, one of his trademark three pointers. But Fish wasn’t satisfied. With time winding down, Fish put in a layup at the buzzer, and the Lakers took a nine-point lead into the half.
Coming out the locker room, Derek scored the first points of the second half, draining two free throws to extend Los Angeles’ lead to 11. After a Kobe Bryant jump shot, No. 2 found Bynum again, then Pau Gasol for assists on back-to-back Laker plays.
Of course, while that was Fish’s best sequence of the evening, he was there at the end too, assisting on a Lamar Odom dunk that put the icing on a 124-112 win.
No. 2 finished with up seven points and five assists.
PHYSICAL FISH
While Fish’s work on the offensive end has been supportive this series, it’s been his fierce determination to not let the Suns’ Steve Nash beat him and the Lakers that’s made a big difference.
No. 2 has been about as good at shutting down the wily Nash as any player could, as noted in the Arizona Republic.
"It is not a fresh idea to get physical with Suns guard Steve Nash but Lakers guard Derek Fisher has done it intensely," writes Paul Coro of the Republic. "Fisher made sure Nash earned his 11 points."
Coro says the kind of defense Fish has been playing is keeping the Suns from finding their pace.
"If Nash is kept off-balance and can’t find clear paths, it will affect his teammates more than the playmaker."
After a second straight loss, Nash had very complimentary things to say about the guard that had him on lockdown.
"He’s a really important part of their team as a solid leader, a guy that knows the triangle inside out, a guy with experience, a guy who knows what his teammates need. His value comes differently than it did earlier."
NEXT UP
Fish will get a brief respite from his guarding duties as the series take three full days off before Game 3 on Sunday night in Phoenix. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 PST and the game can be seen on TNT.
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