Derek Fisher

Derek Fisher

Derek Lamar Fisher (born August 9, 1974) is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Dallas Mavericks in the National Basketball Association (NBA). His NBA career has spanned more than 16 years, during which he has won five NBA championships with the Los Angeles Lakers. He currently serves as the president of the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA).

Fisher played college basketball for the Arkansas–Little Rock Trojans, and he was named the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year in 1996. He was selected by the Lakers with the 24th pick in the 1996 NBA Draft. He spent his first eight seasons with the franchise, and he won three consecutive league championships (2000–2002) with Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal. Fisher signed as a free agent with the Golden State Warriors. He was later traded to the Utah Jazz, whom he helped lead to the Western Conference finals. Due to his daughter's health, he asked to be released from his contract in 2007. He rejoined the Lakers and won two more NBA titles. The Lakers in 2012 traded Fisher to the Houston Rockets, who bought out his contract and waived him. He subsequently played with the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Mavericks.

As of 2012, Fisher had played in 229 career playoff games, the third highest total in NBA history. While playing for the Lakers, he hit a buzzer beater with 0.4 seconds left in game 5 of the 2004 Western Conference Semifinals against the San Antonio Spurs, which the NBA lists as the 18th-greatest playoff moment of all time.