Rumors

On his "Byron Scott's Fast Break" podcast, the Los Angeles Lakers legend claimed that while the 76ers look good on paper with James' addition, expectations must be tempered about Philly easily winning it all. Using the ill-fated 2003-04 Lakers as an example, Scott said the new-look 76ers with James are still not assured of claiming an NBA title. ‘I mean we can go all the way back to the early parts in the 2000s. You got Karl Malone, Gary Payton, Kobe Bryant, Shaq [O'Neal], and you still got [Derek Fisher], you know, you still got an unbelievable starting lineup. And on paper, everybody said, 'Oh, they going to win a championship.' What happened? They played Detroit Pistons, who was a team, much better team, a much better cohesive group of guys who wanted nothing more than to win. And you had friction on that Laker team with Gary Payton and some of the other guys. And then you had the Peacemaker Karl Malone. And then Karl got hurt which really killed their chances of winning the championship and Detroit went through them four games to one. Right? So talent on paper don’t mean a whole lot.’

BasketNews

Bryon Scott on LeBron James with 76ers: “I mean we can go all the way back to the early parts in the 2000s. You got Karl Malone, Gary Payton, Kobe Bryant, Shaq, and you still got D Fish, you know, you still got an unbelievable starting lineup. And on paper, everybody said, “Oh, they going to win a championship.” What happened? They played Detroit Pistons, who was a team, much better team, a much better cohesive group of guys who wanted nothing more than to win. And you had friction on that Laker team with Gary Payton and some of the other guys. And then you had the Peacemaker Karl Malone. And then Karl got hurt which really killed their chances of winning the championship and Detroit went through them four games to one. Right? So talent on paper don’t mean a whole lot. It means you got talent. That’s about all it means. It doesn’t mean or guarantee that you going to win the championship.”

Apple Podcasts

Derek Fisher on LeBron James: I don't like I don't know why we so strongly just go so hard in the paint towards the negative. Cody Decker: We really do. And you know what? I want to take that that type of argument about the quote-unquote ring chasing that he does that again everybody is ring chasing. Fisher: But you're not ring chasing when you're the guy that creates the rings. Like go back in NBA sports history. It's not about where like what team the guy is on. It's about what team it's about where he is, not the city or the team. Lew Alcindor, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. He didn't chase rings. Where he went, the rings followed. 

YouTube

Stefan Bondy: Knicks lore triangle relationship is kaput. Little-known story about Fisher-Govan-Barnes: It led to rumors that Fisher was dating the significant others of his Knicks players, including Tim Hardaway Jr.’s, who said he asked his girlfriend about it: “I’m not even worried about that. I had a talk with my girlfriend,” THJ told reporters in 2016. “If you ask me, it is not true at all. I am completely positive with her judgment and what she said.”

x.com

Derek Fisher and Gloria Govan have split but are currently not talking about filing for divorce ... TMZ Sports has learned. A rep for the estranged couple confirms to TMZ ... the former NBA star and the "Basketball Wives" star have been living separately and leading separate lives. We're told Derek and Gloria built a family together and are in constant communication, trying to work through their issues

TMZ.com

This was the second marriage for both Derek and Gloria. Gloria was previously married to former NBA star Matt Barnes, with whom she shares twin sons, while Derek was previously married to Candace Fisher. Derek and Candace share four children together.

TMZ.com

Derek Fisher: A lineup with Bam, Giannis, LeBron, Andrew Wiggins, I mean, they can switch everything defensively. It would be tough to score on that group. The Heat switched over last season, for sure, maybe parts of the season before, but they were playing really, really fast. They limited their pick-and-roll use, and they were using a little bit more of drive, kick, space, cuts, drifting, and I'm not sure if that's a style that they would stick with if Giannis is now there, combined with adding LeBron.

YouTube

Laker legend Derek Fisher believes LeBron James wasn’t as beloved by the franchise’s fans as he should’ve been. “It’s hard to tell fans exactly what they should or shouldn’t do,” Fisher told the California Post. “I just think the celebration of his departure is a little bit much. I don’t know what the expectations were, short of winning multiple championships, which no NBA team has done since 2018 basically other than the Warriors.”

New York Post

When the 41-year-old James decided to leave the Lakers earlier this month after eight seasons, his longest consecutive stretch with any franchise over his 23-season career, Fisher was taken aback by the reaction from Lakers fans, which he deemed as “celebrating.” “I don’t know what he was supposed to fulfill that he didn’t fulfill,” Fisher told The Post. “He took us to the playoffs [six] seasons, an NBA title, a trip to the Western Conference Finals in 2023, the relevance, national television. The brand didn’t suffer. The Lakers are still world famous for great reasons. So, that part is a little confusing to me.”

New York Post

He didn’t grow up in the organization. He spent the first 15 seasons of his career in the Eastern Conference. He was already considered one of the greatest players of all-time when he joined the Lakers at age 33. “He’s not supposed to be compared to Kobe,” Fisher told The Post. “He’s not supposed to be compared to Magic. Those are very different guys that started their careers here and ended their careers here. It’s apples to oranges as far as that part goes. I just think that considering where the organization was when he arrived, I just think we should be more appreciative.”

New York Post

When asked whether Fisher believes the Lakers’ organization treated James with the respect he deserves, he shrugged. “I’m not sure,” Fisher told The Post. “We don’t know whether he actually was actually frustrated by anything or, you know, [he thought] I’ve been here eight seasons, it’s been a great run. There’s now a new franchise player here the team wants to build around, so I’m going to go do something else. We don’t have to attach any other narratives or reasons to it. “…I don’t necessarily think it was this negative falling out kind of thing. I just think sometimes your time is up and you can move on.”

New York Post

Derek Fisher: "I am surprised that a lot of people in LA didn't love LeBron's time here and that it has been confusing to me the reaction to him deciding not to return to LA. A lot of people have celebrated it and almost had a parade as though this is the greatest thing ever. I am not saying this is doomsday for the Lakers by any means. The organization will be fine. It has been here for 80 years. It will be fine. But I am surprised that some of the reaction for sure and yeah, I think people have moved on. A lot of fans have."

YouTube

Derek Fisher: "I think some of it, you think about the greats of Lakers past, many of those guys were kind of born and raised as Lakers for the most part. You think about James Worthy, number one draft pick. You think about Magic Johnson. Even though Kareem was traded to LA, he spent a considerable amount of time here in Los Angeles and really felt like a piece of the fabric of LA. And so many greats, even Shaq, eight years here. It is as though people forgot he played in Orlando as well. But it is the years here in LA that changed everything. Obviously Kobe being here for 20 seasons. And so I think other stars felt more like they became who they were as Lakers and I think a lot of Lakers fans had a difficult time receiving the fact that LeBron was already LeBron before he got here. He didn't owe Lakers fans anything. He was already LeBron. And I think fans had a hard time reconciling how to fully support a guy that didn't need support for anybody."

YouTube

Jorge Sierra: LeBron James expands his lead as the player with the most playoff series won in NBA history. Two more than Derek Fisher, five more than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the second-highest ranked All-Star.

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