The Golden State Warriors have signed free agent guard Derek Fisher to multi-year contract, it was announced today by Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Mullin. Per team policy, terms of the agreement were not announced.
Fisher, 29, has spent the first eight years of his career with the Los Angeles Lakers, where he was a member of three NBA Championship teams (2000, 2001, 2002). Originally a first round selection of the Lakers in the 1996 NBA Draft (24th overall), Fisher has appeared in 544 regular season games, averaging 7.4 points, 3.0 assists and 2.1 rebounds in 23.7 minutes. Additionally, the Lakers qualified for the playoffs during each of his Fisher's eight seasons in Los Angeles, where he appeared in 117 post-season contests. During the Lakers' run to the 2001 NBA title, he was the club's third leading scorer in the post-season (13.4 ppg), shooting .515 from the floor.
"We feel very fortunate to add a player and person the caliber of Derek Fisher to our team," said Mullin. "The fact that he chose the Warriors over several other attractive suitors is certainly a good feeling. He has proven to be an outstanding competitor and extraordinary winner throughout his career, which will prove beneficial for the Warriors as we move forward. His presence on the floor and in our locker room will be a tremendous asset to our team."
'I'm really excited about this new opportunity with the Warriors," said Fisher. "I was very impressed with the overall pursuit by Chris Mullin and the organization, which certainly helped me make this decision. I think the Warriors are a team headed in the right direction, have a nice young nucleus and I'm glad to be a part of a club on the rise."
An alumnus of Arkansas-Little Rock, Fisher enjoyed his most productive NBA campaign during the 2002-03 season, averaging 10.5 points, 3.6 assists and 1.13 steals, ranking 13th in the NBA in three-point field goal percentage (.401) and starting each of the team's 82 games. He posted double figure averages in scoring for three consecutive seasons - 2000-01 (career-high 11.5), 2001-02 (11.2) and 2002-03 (10.5) - and has ranked among the NBA's top 20 in three-point field goal percentage on two occasions (2001-02, 2002-03). He scored a career-high 28 points 1/12/02 @ Chicago and handed out a career-best 13 assists 1/14/98 vs. Denver. Additionally, he has appeared in each of Los Angeles' 82 regular season games each of the last two years. During the recently-completed 2003-04 campaign, he averaged 7.4 points and 2.3 assists in 21.6 minutes.