Where have you gone Derek Fisher, our Laker Nation turns its lonely eyes to you.

It was odd when Derek Fisher left the Lakers after a run bringing 3 World championships to Los Angeles. Drafted with the 24th pick by Jerry West in 1996, he was with the Lakers for 8 years before he parlayed his success to a free agency contract that was to rich for the Laker blood. So he left for Golden State. Shaq was gone. Then Derek was gone. For some reason it was more odd seeing Derek in a Warriors uniform than Shaq in a Heat jersey. Derek was family, and he just wasn't wearing the right colors anymore.

He was later traded to Utah where he eventually became the backup point guard to a younger faster version of himself. It was like watching a family member who had left home and was lost wandering in the wilderness. Where did Derek Fisher go and how come he is not in Los Angeles? It never did seem quite right. If ever there was a guy who should have started and finished as a Laker it was Derek Fisher.

He never was the fastest, the best, a dead eye shooter, or a huge assist guy, he was just effective. A quality person who was always there when you needed him. He was always there when you needed a big shot to save the day or an assist to get the win, or a flop to stop the opposition. He bled purple and gold. So on the day he signed to leave we all sort of said.... huh!

But now our long lost brother is coming home. Instead of being a part of a Lakers Championship Team, he is now a part of the puzzle to try and save the franchise from oblivion. A good friend to Kobe who will try to calm his anxiety about the future of the franchise. He will again become the starting point guard only to eventually give way to Jordan Farmar or Javaris Crittenton. Eventually, He will once again give way to a younger faster version of himself. His shooting percentages that were once respectable dropped off last year, only to come back, but only for the playoffs. At age 33, does he still have some mojo in his tank? Enough to help lead the Lakers back to a deep run in the playoffs? Enough, to hang on until Javaris or Jorden are ready to take over the reins and lead the team further still? Enough to teach our young kids what it means to be a champion PG for the Los Angeles Lakers? I know he has enough to put the family back together again. In a strange way Derek Fisher just may become the spiritual leader of the team. The glue that holds all the pieces back together. If another big trade is coming, where several players may come and go, he will be the guy who will have to turn a bunch of strangers into a new the new Laker family.

Kobe is the warrior, but he just isn't all that good at the family part. He is like the brother who is strong but wanders emotionally and needs to be reigned back in on occasion. For Derek this will be a tough assingment. Is Derek up for the challenge? The Lakers are betting what little they have left that he is? Without a blockbuster trade there is no money in the cap space till to go out and get another player who is capable of making a difference. Drafting Javaris and signing Derek is it. We might have a few shackles left over to sign a role player like Chris Mihm, but a big impact can now only be done if Lamar Odom, Kwame Brown, and or Andrew Bynum are gone. In any trade package, it is likely that one of our three other PG's will be included in the deal. So one of either Sasha, Jordan, or Javaris will be gone as well.

So the confusion over what the Lakers are now going to do is over. We all can focus on one thing. The Trade. If it comes, will be give up to much? Will we get the right player? Will we get the player we want? Do we get KG? Will JO be the guy? Will they have to take a chance on Ron Artest? Whoever it is, Derek will be there to help make it work.

JamFan

Excerpt: "If you want, you can call Mitch (Kupchak) up, call those guys up and talk to them about it," Kobe said. "I'm not going to beat a dead horse in the head anymore. Just because too much has been said already. I don't want to get into it no more."

I followed him to the parking lot after the press conference because, you know, Kobe gives some of his best interviews to strangers with digital cameras.

Still, no clarification was coming.

Calling Kupchak up to see what Kobe wants is silly. Kobe has proven quiet capable of speaking for Kobe.

Besides, the Lakers' general manager has already said personal conversations with Kobe are private and the Lakers do not plan to trade him but to build their team around him.

Since Kobe did not take the opportunity Wednesday to say he wanted to remain a Laker, it can only be assumed he still wants to be traded. Which was the last thing he said through his people, I think.

ESPN's Ric Bucher, who started all this intrigue when he first reported an unhappy Kobe might ask to be dealt, was last heard saying the Kobester still wanted out. And the Lakers should trade him, because they didn't want to wonder if he would show up at training camp.

This is a thinly veiled and ridiculous Kobe threat. Bucher's mouth doesn't move about Kobe unless Kobe is behind him pulling strings.

With two more years on Kobe's contract, his leverage is not the best, so he is apparently doing what he can to pressure owner Jerry Buss into changing his mind.

The Lakers are no doubt hoping to change Kobe's mind by signing Derek Fisher to a three-year contract. Fisher was drafted by the Lakers the same year they traded for then 17-year-old Kobe. They became close friends, the solid Fisher one of the few Lakers who could be a bridge between Kobe and Shaquille O'Neal.

"He's a very, very special person and very dear to me," Kobe said of Fisher. "We've remained friends even when he was at Golden State. We continue to talk regularly."

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The draft was the next avenue towards upgrading the roster, but everybody had picks and there is no reason to believe that our draft picks were any better than those selected by other teams. And we certainly didn't get Kevin Durant. But we did get a player in Javaris Crittenten that most Mocks had going higher than 19, and we did need a PG, so it seems a solid pick. He is also a very quick tall guard that Coach Jackson has always preferred. Sun Yue is a mystery player for me so I went and looked at several video tapes on him mostly because I was intrigued by a player who is supposed to be a SF and yet he averaged over 10 assists a game last season. After watching all the video, I still do not know what to think. He does seem to play smooth and effortless.

So what do we do now. Free Agency begins at 9PM Pacific time. We have a little money so spend so lets go spend it. A trade could effect how much we have available, but as for now we know we can spend our MLE of about 6 Mil a year to bring a free agent. The Lakers will also talk with Luke Walton about returning at an increase in pay, and Chris Mihm about returning at a decrease in pay.

It doesn't do much good for us to talk about Vince Carter, Chauncey Billups, or Rashard Lewis, because we would have to do a sign and trade to bring in those guys. I guess there is a chance you could get PG Mo Williams or G/SF Gerald Wallace with the MLE, but they would really have to want to come to LA and play with Kobe. Others who might be MLE level players are Desmond Mason or Grant Hill, but neither of those guys are PG's.

That brings us to Theo Papaloukas. It is unclear what NBA team he would want to go to, but he has signaled that he might be willing to jump over to the NBA. There have been rumors of the Lakers being interested in Theo, but reports are that they have not actually offered him a deal. Could it be that they really couldn't until 9PM Saturday. After watching a lot of tape on theo, I felt that he reminded me most of how Steve Nash dishes the ball. He looks more athletic that Steve Nash. Many of you might remember the now infamous World Championships game when he humbled the best PG's that Team USA threw at Theo trying to stop him. Some have questioned how his game would adjust to the NBA. Based on history, the NBA might just have to adjust to Theo.

The team that gets him just might be the team that is willing to buy out his Euro contract. It is a problem. If he is the best PG that we can get with MLE money, I feel that Jerry Buss should shell out the dough to buy out his contract, because that money doesn't count against the cap. It just hurts Jerry's pocket book. But shelling out the money would go a long way to convince Kobe that he is serious about bringing the talent to give Kobe his best chance of winning a championship. Theo is the best PG in Europe, and was the best PG on the floor when they played Team USA. The best NBA point guards looked like girls trying to stop Theo. He went for 25 and dished off a bunch of assists. But what I remember most is that he played real smart and had great court sense. The kind of court sense that Steve Nash has. Don't take my word for it. Go look at some tape. It will impress you.

For less than MLE money we could go for PG's Steve Blake, Jason Hart, Jannero Pargo, Chucky Atins, Gary Payton, or Kenyon Dooling, but they are second tier players who aren't even an upgrade over Smush. Signing any of them is certainly not going impress Kobe.

There are other players that we might be able to sign for the MLE (or less) that could come in and help, but our roster is set and we know who are starters are going to be, except at PG.

All of the trade rumors this last month have revolved around "Bigs" like KG, JO, or Marcus Camby. The only trade rumor involving a PG was Cook for Luther head. But Luther Head is a second tier PG at this point. But that trade does not really cost us any cap space. And after selecting Javaris it is off the table. If we eventually trade for one of our "Big" targets, we will still need a PG. And after spending 3 or 4 of our assets to bring that impact player in, the MLE will still probably be the only way to get a good veteran PG to our roster.

So the free agent period begins. There will be a lot of talk, followed by rumors, more talk, and finally one by one the best will slowly be signed by other teams and Kupcake will be left standing there holding the bag, and empty bag. Or will he? He can only improve the team in one of three ways. If he can't make the big trade, and if you do not have a low lottery pick, then you better find a way to sign a first tier free agent PG. If Kupcake doesn't, it's one, two, three strikes your out.

JamFan

As if on cue, Farmar arrived for a workout at the team's training facility at 9 p.m.

Kupchak mentioned Crittenton's size and strength as plusses. Crittenton, who played one season at Georgia Tech, also ran the triangle offense at Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy High.

"I'm a Laker fan," Crittenton said. "I watch a lot of Kobe when I have a chance. I'm a Magic Johnson fan. To be honest, I was a little surprised that I slipped that far. I'm thankful that they selected me. Things happen for a reason."

The Lakers then took 6-7 3/4 Chinese guard Sun Yue with the 40th pick and Spanish center Marc Gasol with the 48th pick.

Yue, 21, has an impressive 34-inch vertical jump, and averaged 13.5 points and 10.5 assists for the Beijing Aoshen of the American Basketball Assn. (The team was suspended from the Chinese Basketball Assn. but subsequently moved to Los Angeles.)

Gasol, the 22-year-old brother of Memphis power forward Pau Gasol, averaged 10.8 points and 5.6 rebounds last season with Akasvayu Girona in Spain.

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