Derek Fisher is a Los Angeles basketball legend, playing 18 seasons in the NBA and winning five championships with the Los Angeles Lakers. Fisher was drafted 24th overall by the Lakers in 1996, and played alongside Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal en route to three consecutive titles from 2000-2002. He later added two more rings in 2009 and 2010 with Los Angeles. Fisher also played for the Golden State Warriors, Utah Jazz, Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder.
Fisher’s accolades include holding second all-time behind only LeBron James for NBA playoff game appearances (259). He’s also known for hitting a buzzer-beater with 0.4 seconds left against the San Antonio Spurs in Game 5 of the 2004 Western Conference Semifinals as a member of the Lakers. In his time as a player, he served as President of the Players’ Union from 2006-2013.
After finishing the 2014 season with the Thunder, Fisher transitioned to the sidelines, being named Head Coach of the New York Knicks on June 10, 2014. Fisher coached into the 2015-2016 season with New York, helping develop then-rookie Kristaps Porzingis.
In the spring of 2016, Fisher became a television analyst for TNT, NBA TV and later Spectrum SportsNet as an in-studio analyst for the Lakers. Fisher’s Los Angeles basketball legacy continued when he was named the 12th Head Coach of the Los Angeles Sparks on Dec. 5, 2018. On December 22, 2020 the Sparks appointed Derek Fisher to be the General Manager. Since departing the Sparks, Fisher has focused on his family and his role on various organization’s boards, including Play Equity Fund/LA84. Fisher is married to Gloria Govan. They are a blended family sharing 5 children (Carter, Isaiah, Tatum, Drew, Chloe) ranging from ages 14 to 20 years old.
Fisher is a native of Little Rock, Arkansas where he attended Parkview Arts and Science Magnet High School, lettering in basketball. He then attended the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, where he finished his four-year career second all-time in school history in points (1,393), assists (472) and steals (189). His senior year, he was named Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year.
