The Los Angeles Lakers were shaken yesterday with the announcement that franchise great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had been diagnosed with leukemia.
Derek Fisher, in an interview with the LA Times, had some thoughtful words about the former superstar’s career and what his fight means to cancer and leukemia survivors everywhere:
“We’re obviously thinking of him and his family and his health overall,” Fisher said “We’re positive about the news we’ve heard in terms of it being manageable. We’re not sure when we’ll see him next, but we’re definitely thinking of him.”
 Derek and Kareem (upper left) at an NBA Cares event in 2008 (Getty Images). |
Derek is all too familiar with the shock and struggle of a cancer diagnosis. In 2007, Fish’s daughter was diagnosed with a rare form of eye cancer. Fish’s efforts during his daughter’s fight have helped raise awareness and No. 2 believes, given the same platform, Kareem will also help raise attention for leukemia research.
“His spotlight affords him an opportunity to touch a lot of families and a lot of people that have been hit with cancer, with leukemia in particular.” Fisher said.
“Because this is a rare form, I think he can do a lot of good and I think he’s looking forward to
[helping].”You can see the rest of Derek’s remarks at the 2:39 mark of a video put together by Lakers.com.
PICK AND ROLL
Andrew Bynum returns to the Lakers lineup for Thursday’s match up against the Suns, and he and D-Fish will be tested right off the bat.Eric Pincus of Hoops World notes that the tandem has been playing some fantastic pick and roll defense as of late:
“Bynum has been LA’s second scorer with 20.0 points a game along with 10.6 boards and 1.2 blocks. Coach Phil Jackson has relied on him for heavy minutes (40.0 a game) and Andrew has responded, especially defensively.
His pick and roll defense, paired with Derek Fisher, in the final 5-10 minutes of the Houston Rockets win was a breakthrough for Bynum. Jackson’s biggest criticism to date has been the young centers ability to defend wisely.”
Now, Fish, Bynum and the Lakers are running into one of the NBA’s best pick and roll teams. How the duo handles Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire when they come to Los Angeles will have a lot to do with the outcome of the game.
NEXT UP
The Lakers take on the Phoenix Suns on Thursday night at 7:30 PST. The game is on TNT.RELATED ARTICLES
Phoenix Suns going back to basics (L.A. Times, Nov 11, 2009)
http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-spw-nba-notes11-2009nov11,0,3590824,full.story
Lakers Surviving Injuries (HoopsWorld, Nov. 8, 2009)
http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=14270