Lakers Moments: Derek Fisher and the .4 second shot
This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.
He shoots, he scores: The Lakers’ Derek Fisher celebrates his miraculous shot with 0.4 remaining in the 2004 playoff game as San Antonio’s Manu Ginobili points to the clock.
Fisher has won five championships with the Lakers and made many big plays along the way. But his most memorable play did not come during a championship season. It happened during a Western Conference semifinal game in 2004, a year in which the Lakers were defeated in the NBA Finals.
And it all played out in 0.4 seconds. That’s how much time was left on the clock when San Antonio’s Tim Duncan made a shot to give the Spurs a one-point lead. Fisher followed with a winner. He took an inbound pass from Gary Payton and in the same motion turned and fired an 18-foot shot over Manu Ginobili before the horn sounded.
“As it got closer,” Fisher said, “I knew the ball was going in.”
The shot, which Times columnist Bill Plaschke deemed the second biggest shot in franchise history, established Fisher as one of the most clutch performers to wear a Lakers uniform, a reputation he has lived up to many times.
Read more about Derek Fisher and his 12 years with Los Angeles in All Things Lakers, the L.A. Times’ interactive database of all things purple and gold.
-- Chuck Schilken and Sarah Ardalani