by Monch Paluay

Five-time NBA champ excited for Nuggets–Lakers first round playoff match-up! 

Eighteen-year NBA veteran and head coach, Derek Fisher, is back in Manila! This time, he shares his coaching principles to up-and-coming local coaches. Together with champion coaches, Norman Black and Jong Uichico, Fisher facilitated a coaching clinic at a gym in Mandaluyong City. Known for his defensive prowess as a player, he focused on teaching individual and team defense. He taught the fundamentals of proper defensive stance, closeout and ball denial.

Aside from being a longtime player, Derek Fisher was also a Head Coach for the New York Knicks and the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks. He also served as National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) president. His first visit in the Philippines was in 2011 when he joined an All-Star team that played against PBA stars. That team included Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant and Derrick Rose.

In his media availability, he shared that of the 5 championship teams that he was part of, his favorite teams are the 2001 and 2009 teams. He said, “I liked the 2001 team because it was the best, and the 2009 team because we learned to win a championship without Hall-of-Fame center Shaquille O’Neal.”

He’s also excited for the Nuggets vs Lakers first round playoff match-up. He feels that both teams are slightly different from the last year’s teams and that the Lakers have been playing very well after the all-star break.

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