Long before he launched the shot that thrust "point-four" into the Los Angeles Lakers lexicon, Derek Fisher grasped the weight of one night's effort and the possibilities that lay between clock ticks on a humid May evening.
He was a firsthand witness to the Kobe-to-Shaq lob against Portland that launched the Lakers' three-peat run in 2000 and to Robert Horry's 3-point stunner against Sacramento that made the third championship possible.
On such plays are legends and championships forged. On the other end of the spectrum lies Horry's 3-point shot that cruelly rattled out last May in San Antonio and perhaps denied the Lakers a fourth consecutive title.
So as everyone gathered before tipoff Thursday night at the SBC Center, the conference semifinals tied 2-2 -- exactly as it was one year to the day earlier, when Horry misfired -- Fisher spoke up. Though 10 wins away from the championship, he said the Lakers could take their greatest step with a victory right then, right there.
"Before the game, we always huddle up and I really honestly felt -- and still feel -- that winning that game last night puts us in a position to win the championship," Fisher said. "That's how much that game really meant, to be able to go into San Antonio and win that game against arguably the best team in basketball other than ourselves.
"The way that they've been playing, I really felt like if we could figure out a way to win that game, we could definitely come back home and win on Saturday and put ourselves in a position where we're four wins away from being back in the Finals."
Two hours and 34 minutes later, Fisher took an inbounds pass from Gary Payton with 0.4 seconds left, turned and heaved an 18-footer that made him an instant star and put the Lakers firmly on track for a fourth championship in five years.
"I'm still numb now," Fisher said Friday afternoon.
The Sacramento Kings or Minnesota Timberwolves would still stand between the Lakers and the Finals, and there is an Eastern Conference opponent to think about, but few would question that San Antonio stands as the greatest obstacle to a Lakers revival.
From a 2-0 series deficit to a 3-2 lead, the Lakers have recaptured the swagger, self-respect and belief in the impossible that carried them through three consecutive title-winning springs. They can close out the Spurs tonight at Staples Center or Wednesday in San Antonio.
The Lakers have won 10 consecutive closeout games, dating back to the 2000 Finals.
"We have a killer instinct, we like putting teams away," Kobe Bryant said. "San Antonio, they're going to come here ready to play. Yeah, it was a demoralizing loss for them in Game 5, but they're going to come back ready to play in Game 6. We just have to make sure we're ready."
The Spurs lost four consecutive games only once this season, in early December. But in the past seven days alone, the Lakers have snapped two lengthy Spurs streaks -- 17 consecutive wins at home and 17 in a row overall.
Tim Duncan has gone 16 for 42 (.381) from the field in the past three games. Tony Parker has averaged 13.7 points on 18-for-53 shooting (.340) in the three losses after averaging 25 points on 50 percent shooting in the two victories.
And the Spurs are now stuck in the same position the Lakers were one year ago. The Lakers had fought back from a 25-point deficit to put Horry in position to win Game 5 in 2003. On Thursday, as their tin-can arena rumbled, the Spurs erased a 16-point deficit and appeared to have the win when Duncan sank a falling-down 18-footer in the final second.
"It's definitely a warning sign," coach Phil Jackson said of the Lakers' fourth-quarter collapse.
Only seven teams have come back from a 2-0 deficit to win a series, none since the Houston Rockets did it in 1994 and again in 1995. Houston won the championship both years and rechristened itself "Clutch City" for a series of big-time shots that fueled its runs.
The Lakers' three-peat was similarly built on buzzer beaters and signature moments. The Lakers got their first when Kobe Bryant lobbed to a dunking Shaquille O'Neal in a fourth-quarter comeback against Portland in Game 7 of the 2000 conference finals. Many more followed.
Bryant felt it when Fisher's shot swished Thursday, and the Lakers celebrated in a manner usually reserved for later rounds.
"It felt," Bryant said, "like it was meant to be. It felt like it was meant to be. Last year, maybe it wasn't. Robert's shot goes down in the basket and rattles out. This year, Derek drills it."
Four-time NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins arrived in Taiwan with his family early yesterday to finish his renewed contract with the Taiwan Beer Leopards in the T1 League. Cousins initially played a four-game contract with the Leopards in January. On March 18, the Taoyuan-based team announced that Cousins had renewed his contract. “Hi what’s up Leopard fans, I’m back. I’m excited to be back and can’t wait to join the team,” Cousins said in a video posted on the Leopard’s Facebook page. “Most of all, can’t wait to see you guys, the fans, next weekend. So make sure you come out and support the Beer
Revelations of positive doping tests for nearly two dozen Chinese swimmers that went unpunished sparked an intense flurry of accusations and legal threats between the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the head of the US drug-fighting organization, who has long been one of WADA’s fiercest critics. WADA on Saturday said it was turning to legal counsel to address a statement released by US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) CEO Travis Tygart, who said WADA and anti-doping authorities in China swept positive tests “under the carpet by failing to fairly and evenly follow the global rules that apply to everyone else in the world.” The
Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei on Saturday won silver in the men’s under-60kg category at the Asian Judo Championships in Hong Kong. Nicknamed the “judo heartthrob” in Taiwan, the Olympic silver-medalist missed out on his first Asian Championships gold when he lost to Japanese judoka Taiki Nakamura in the finals. Yang defeated three opponents on Saturday to reach the final after receiving a bye through the round of 32. He first topped Laotian Soukphaxay Sithisane in the round of 16 with two seoi nage (over-the-shoulder throws), then ousted Indian Vijay Kumar Yadav in the quarter-finals with his signature ude hishigi sankaku gatame (triangular armlock). He
Rafael Nadal on Wednesday said the upcoming French Open would be the moment to “give everything and die” on the court after his comeback from injury in Barcelona was curtailed by Alex de Minaur. The 22-time Grand Slam title winner, back playing this week after three months on the sidelines, battled well, but eventually crumbled 7-5, 6-1 against the world No. 11 from Australia in the second round. Nadal, 37, who missed virtually all of last season, is hoping to compete at the French Open next month where he is the record 14-time champion. The Spaniard said the clash with De Minaur was