Press Enterprise: From afar, before he ever signed with the Lakers, Derek Fisher felt Kobe Bryant’s pain and Lakers coach Phil Jackson’s pain.
Fisher understood “Kobe’s and Phil’s frustration” when both lashed out over the summer, when both questioned the organization’s commitment to making the team better, when both wanted significant improvements.
But to Fisher, Bryant’s rant was never solely about bringing in top talent. To Fisher, Bryant’s rant had a deeper meaning.
“I never thought it was, ‘I’ve got to get Kevin Garnett, or I’ve got to get Jason Kidd, or I’ve got to get Jermaine O’Neal,’” Fisher said. “I just felt he said and still is saying, ‘I need some winners. I want some winners.’”
The Lakers did make an unsuccessful bid to get Garnett and O’Neal this offseason and just didn’t pull the trigger on the Kidd trade last season.
They re-signed Chris Mihm and Luke Walton and brought back Fisher.
To Fisher, who has become a confidant to Bryant, Bryant hadn’t given up on his teammates, the same teammates he still has.
To Fisher, who played eight years with Bryant and won three NBA championships with him, Bryant wanted some more “warriors.”
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