Thunder's Fisher chasing 6th NBA championship
OKLAHOMA CITY — A long, taxing year is coming to a familiar finish for Oklahoma City Thunder guard Derek Fisher.
It all started with him being front and center during the NBA lockout as the president of the players’ union. It grew more complicated when the Los Angeles Lakers traded him away after he’d won five championships with the franchise.
Fisher signed on with Oklahoma City, and he’s three wins away from achieving his ultimate goal of winning a sixth title. Only 13 players in NBA history have been a part of that many championship teams.
“What it would mean to win a championship means enough by itself without adding what has happened before now,” Fisher said. “I think for this particular team and group of guys, this particular organization, there’s a lot of meaning that would come from us finding a way to win three more games. So, that’s primarily my focus right now. And then for me personally, there are a number of things I just won’t choose to reflect on or look into until after this is long done and I can step away from things for a minute.”
Fisher was heavily involved in the league’s labor dispute, engaging in the conference room discussions that eventually were able to save a season that was in peril. His season took an unsettling turn when the Lakers unexpectedly traded him to Houston and he decided not to go.
Instead, he looked around to identify teams he thought gave him the best chance to win a title and he settled with the Thunder.
Even then, the turbulence wasn’t over. The leadership of the NBA Players Association asked for Fisher to resign as president in April, and he refused while questioning the union’s business practices.
That dispute still looms as Fisher and the Thunder prepare to play Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Sunday night in Miami, with the series tied 1-1. Fisher doesn’t expect any resolution until later this summer.
