Derek Has Lakers Ready for Heat Check

//Derek Has Lakers Ready for Heat Check

Derek Has Lakers Ready for Heat Check

By | 2016-10-22T05:57:50-08:00 December 25th, 2010|News|Comments Off on Derek Has Lakers Ready for Heat Check

Derek Fisher starts at point guard for the NBA’s current dynasty in Los Angeles. But this offseason, he flirted with the idea of joining a group that strives to become one.

Before re-upping with the Lakers in the summer, Fish entertained offers to be the point guard for the Miami Heat’s star-studded ensemble.

Of course, D-Fish decided to stay in LA and chase a sixth ring with the dynasty he helped to establish. But today, Derek and the Lakers face off against the cast Miami put together without him.

Led by the trio of LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, the Heat come to the Staples Center to take on the two-time defending champs in a Christmas Day Matinee.

When he talked about his own ‘Decision’ prior to the season, Derek acknowledged that an experience in Miami could have been exciting. But he’s established a championship-caliber team with the Lakers and wants to see that through to the end.

"

[I said] ‘Yes’ to what we’ve built there, recognizing we have a team that can win the championship again this year, and hopefully more championships to come. So I didn’t really view it as a ‘No’ to other teams, it was more a resounding ‘Yes’ to Los Angeles."

Though he declined an opportunity to join the Miami trio, he didn’t expect them to take it personally, because he did so out of an intense loyalty to the Lakers and the City of Angels.

"Saying ‘No’ to Miami and other teams was really not as much about saying ‘No’ to them as much as was saying ‘Yes’ to my teammates and my relation with Kobe Bryant, saying yes to the city of Los Angeles and the fans."

With the marquee matchup fast approaching, Bill Reiter of Fox Sports examined the Heat and surmised that a player like Derek is exactly what Miami is missing:

It’s almost Christmas, so let’s play a little make-believe and imagine a shiny new present under the tree for Miami: Derek Fisher in a Heat jersey.

In this moment of holiday magic, Erik Spoelstra has a seasoned veteran as his extension out on the floor.

There’s Fisher, 36 years old, in Heat black, a flamed basketball marking him as the man tasked with bringing together the Big Three and, just as important, keeping them on track when things go astray.

His five rings, his leadership, his court cred all say he can do it. They carry more weight with LeBron James than Carlos Arroyo’s steady but uninspired play or Mario Chalmers’ speed, talent and inability to bridge James, Dwyane Wade and Spoelstra.

In this winter wonderland in which Fisher is no longer a Laker, as with his years in Los Angeles, Fisher becomes the one person the team’s most important ego listens to. The one guy who can tell him to shape up. The one guy who can reach someone whose talent often makes him unreachable.

It’s a good thought with, like any good Christmas story, a deeper moral: The Heat are missing a key piece — a Derek Fisher — necessary to bring it all together.

But Fish is most comfortable in LA and once the decision was made, there’s been no remorse about his choice.

"I’m very happy and very comfortable with the decision that I made. My relationship with Kobe and my relationship with the city and these fans means to more to me than any other thing in my professional career. I’m excited to be back."

STARS COME OUT
The biggest stars in the league meet up at Staples Center on Christmas Day with Lakers-Heat representing the meat in a NBA sandwich on ESPN and ABC.

Fish agrees that of the star-powered Christmas Day NBA lineup, the meeting in Los Angeles will be the league’s marquee game.

"Our game is built on a lot of our individual guys and stars and talent," Derek told the LA Times. "Rightfully or wrongfully, that’s how it is and so when you have a game that has a matchup like a Kobe Bryant and a Pau Gasol and a Lamar Odom, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James and Chris Bosh and the personalities that are going to be matching up in this game, I don’t know if it can get any bigger than that from that standpoint. Although, there will be other games in this regular season that could mean more."

But Derek said the Lakers won’t use the game to analyze where they are this season:

"It’s a big game in terms of excitement and anticipation and the marquee matchup in terms of the star power," he told ESPN LA. "That’s what makes it a big game. I don’t know if it’s about using it as a measuring stick. It may be different in their locker room, but in my opinion, for us, no."

In LA’s final game against the Heat last season, Derek had a big game finishing with 14 points in a loss.

"A lot of families will be sitting around the television and watching, and so we’re still going to come out and give the best effort we can," he said.

Today’ tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m. PST and can be seen on ABC.

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