Much to the dismay of many Utah Jazz fans, Derek Fisher is going to get the last laugh after all.
Sometime later tonight, or possibly as late as Tuesday night, Fisher will win another NBA championship with the Los Angeles Lakers.
And somewhere in Utah, a lot of still-bitter Jazz fans will be cursing him and calling him a "traitor" — and some other things not suitable for a family newspaper.
It really doesn't need to be that way. Certainly not any more, as if it ever did.
But some Jazz fans feel like he betrayed them, and they can't get over it.
That's why they keep booing Fisher every time he has visited EnergySolutions Arena the last couple of years — ever since he bolted after spending one season with the Jazz to re-sign with the Lakers, a franchise which Fisher helped win three straight NBA titles from 2000-02.
Actually, the reason for much of Jazz fans' disdain toward him, quite frankly, is because they probably wish the little left-handed guard was still here.
Fisher, after all, has a reputation for being a classy professional in every sense of the word — not only the way he plays basketball, but the way he prepares himself, and the way he conducts himself on and off the court — his surprisingly blatant, cheap-shot foul against the Houston Rockets' Luis Scola earlier in this year's playoffs notwithstanding.
"He's an incredible person, as well as a basketball player," teammate Lamar Odom said in an Associated Press story. "He puts being a good man first, and that's important, especially for the chemistry in the locker room and things like that."
"Fish is one of the best not only teammates I've ever had, but one of the greatest people I've ever known," the Lakers' Luke Walton told the AP.
Unfortunately for Jazz fans, after spending just one season in Utah — where his veteran leadership proved critical and his late-game heroics helped the Jazz win a memorable second-round playoff game in overtime against Golden State — Fisher asked to be released from his contract in July 2007.
His daughter, Tatum, who was 11 months old at the time, had been diagnosed with retinoblastoma, a rare form of eye cancer, and Fisher felt he needed to re-locate to a bigger city where his daughter could receive the best treatment and care.
In a move as classy as Fisher himself, the Jazz granted Fisher's request. But less than three weeks later, he signed a three-year contract with the Lakers — a deal which incensed many Jazz fans who felt Fisher had lied and fooled the Jazz front office regarding his true intentions.
What many fans forget is that Fisher took a sizable pay cut — losing $8 million over three years — from what he would have received in Utah to play for the Lakers. That cost-savings helped facilitate other roster moves which the Jazz have made since then.
But while some folks in Utah will continue to curse Fisher forever, he displayed the real reason to regret his departure on Thursday night in Game 4 of the NBA Finals against the Orlando Magic.
Fisher, who had missed all five of his 3-point attempts in the game, drilled a game-tying 26-footer over Jameer Nelson with 4.6 seconds remaining in regulation to send it into overtime. Fisher then drained a tie-breaking 27-footer with 31.3 seconds left in OT, and the Lakers went on to win 99-91 to take a commanding 3-1 series lead going into Game 5 tonight.
His late-game heroics added to his legacy as a fearless, clutch player— and that, more than anything else, is what the Jazz have missed since the retirement of point guard John Stockton.
"We've always said that character has got to be in players if they're going to be great players," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said in an AP report. "You can't just draft it. It's not just about talent; it's about character, and he's a person of high character, brings that to play, not only in just his gamesmanship but also his intestinal fortitude."
And while Jazz point guard Deron Williams has become that tough guy who will take the last shot with the game on the line — the fierce leader that every team needs — Fisher, 34, knows all about that difficult, vital role.
"We have to be willing to take blame, responsibility, accountability," Fisher said.
That attitude, more than anything else, is why we should miss him — and why some of you will boo him, cuss him and call him names when he earns that fourth NBA title ring.
E-MAIL: rhollis@desnews.com