Fisher a Real Warrior

Derek Fisher, who played in the shadows of the talent and turmoil of the Lakers for eight seasons until he beat the San Antonio Spurs this year in the final 0.4 seconds of a playoff game, has left for the Golden State Warriors.

Eager for playing time after being replaced by Gary Payton in the starting lineup last season, Fisher on Thursday agreed to a six-year, $37-million contract.

“It was a tough call,” said Fisher’s agent, Mark Bartelstein. “The Lakers have been his home. But he had to make a decision, economically, for his family and himself. He’s been a warrior in this league, and this was his due. I do know he’s leaving with a heavy heart.”

Tough and smart, Fisher spent his career filling the small gaps between the superstars, first Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant, then those two and Payton and Karl Malone.

The organization loved him for his maturity and his effort. When chaos struck and O’Neal and Bryant ducked, Fisher would stand before the public and smile and promise something better. He became a solid three-point shooter, particularly in the postseason.

Fisher, who will be 30 next month, was a starter for three seasons, two of them ending in championships, when the Lakers acquired Payton a year ago. He fell back into a reserve role and as a result struggled with his game for most of the season.

By the final games of the regular season and into the playoffs, however, Fisher regained his shooting touch and defended with his familiar tenacity. In the Finals, he was part of the group that requested more playing time from Coach Phil Jackson, though by then the Lakers were all but beaten.

They might not have been in the Finals were it not for Fisher’s shot in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals. After Tim Duncan’s fadeaway jumper over O’Neal, the Spurs led by a point with 0.4 seconds remaining. On the subsequent inbound play, Fisher took a pass from Payton while running toward the sideline. In one motion he turned and made a 20-footer that gave the Lakers the win and a 3-2 advantage in a series they won in six.

Fisher could have signed with the Lakers, but the Warriors offered more money and a longer contract.

“We’ll see him a lot,” Laker General Manager Mitch Kupchak said. “He’ll be a Laker forever.”

The Lakers await a decision from Karl Malone and have made an offer to Slava Medvedenko, both free-agent power forwards. They also have contacted free agent Vlade Divac. The Lakers have offered Malone their midlevel exception, but Malone is getting calls from the Spurs and Miami Heat, and Divac probably would not come for less than the midlevel exception. Among his considerations, Malone’s wife, Kay, was born in San Antonio and, he said, “She loves it there.”

These have been difficult weeks for Malone, who left Utah after 18 seasons and found disorder, complicated by the first severe injury of his career. He has had knee and finger surgeries since the end of the season and still is trying to make sense of the departures of Jackson and O’Neal.

He sat on his couch in Newport Beach on Thursday, iced his knee, and mulled his future.

“My love, my caring for Kobe and Shaq is the same,” he said. “I’ve lost one of them. On one hand, I’m happy. On the other hand, I’m unhappy.

“So that’s where I’m at. I know how hard the kid, Kobe, worked and he deserves what he’s gotten. But I miss the heck out of Big. I wish it would have been handled better with Shaq and Phil. Those guys, that’s what I signed up for.”

After some trepidation when he moved to Los Angeles from Utah, Malone said he still feels the draw of the fans here.

“The people have become so important to me,” he said. “That’s what’s tough. I could never have imagined what the people would do for me personally, in a single year.... I get strength from that and I got through a difficult time in my life, with my mother passing and then getting hurt. However it goes, I will never forget these people.”

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Luke Walton sprained his left wrist Thursday during a Summer Pro League game in Long Beach. X-rays and an MRI exam were negative, but Walton will sit out the remainder of the summer games.... The Lakers have scheduled a news conference for today to introduce new arrivals Lamar Odom, Brian Grant and Caron Butler.

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Gone Fishing

Derek Fisher’s eight seasons with the Lakers:

*--* SEASONS G FG% PTS REB AST 1996-1997 80 397 3.9 1.2 1.5 1997-1998 82 434 5.8 2.4 4.1 1998-1999 50 376 5.9 1.8 3.9 1999-2000 78 346 6.3 1.9 2.8 2000-2001 20 412 11.4 3.0 4.3 2001-2002 70 411 11.2 2.1 2.6 2002-2003 82 437 10.5 2.9 3.6 2003-2004 82 352 7.1 1.9 2.3 Totals 544 397 7.4 2.1 3.0

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