Fish or Cut Bait Revisited

Posted by J R Stewart on August 29, 2008

‘Fresh Fish’ (Garrett Ellwood – NBAE/Getty Images)

A year ago I wrote about what we knew then about Derek Fisher leaving. Now that the passions have died down, let’s take a look at what we know today in comparison to last year.

Last Year: Derek Fisher was a great guy, good leader and great trade for the Jazz, divesting themselves of 3 marginal players, their salaries and opening up 2 roster spots. That being said, Fish left something to be desired in his play. He was certainly not a 2, and his presence denied Brewer an opportunity to develop. In the Jazz opening run, and at spots after that, he played well, but overall his play didn’t measure up to his leadership.

This Year: Certainly Fish played much better for the Lakers, than he ever did for the Jazz, at least against the Jazz. We saw what Brewer has done with the opportunity afforded by the Jazz’ release of Fish.

Last Year: I felt that 3rd string Dee Brown actually did a better job of getting up court quickly, running the point and distributing the ball, than Fish did. Frequently Fish ended up dribbling out the shot clock, while the offense stagnated, settling for a forced shot to beat the buzzer. But Dee had little opportunity, because the Jazz was enraptured with Fish, his rings and his leadership ability. So when he opted out of his contract, I felt it was the best thing for the Jazz. The Jazz freed up some massive salary and a roster spot. Underneath their serious visages at the press conference, the Jazz should have been ecstatic. They got ride of an older player, who was an inconsistent, low percentage shooter, with a bloated, unmovable contract, while opening up space, and money, for some younger talent. It also gives D-Wil and C-Booze the opportunity to step up and become the true team leaders.

This Year: Without Fisher’s release there would NOT have been any backup point guard developed. They would have probably would have just invested in Hart (a bust), instead of Hart and Ronnie Price (a pleasant surprise). The Jazz ended up with a younger, less expensive point guard (Price) with great upside potential, which is not only an improvement over Fish, but better than Dee Brown. Also, D-Will has taken over the leadership of the team, which would have been hindered by the retention of Fisher.

Last Year: Fish is going to his best situation, the triangle offense in sunny LA. The triangle doesn’t require getting the ball up court quickly, before the defense is set up, nor the creation of opportunities for assists, like a true point guard offense does. And, LA is sooo much closer to medical care in the big apple.

This Year: What more is there to say?
Fish played much better in the triangle, than he ever did for the Jazz. Sure, his recruiting by the Petulant Man-Child, while still under contract was not really tampering, because he is ONLY a player, and can only relay his and the staff’s desires. The facts that he signed almost immediately with the Lakers (which remains 700 miles further away from his medical team in New York), the location of his friends, his wife’s family, the team which drafted him and giving him 3 championship rings, had no bearing on his decision to ask the Jazz for a release. Rather, this came after his release, much thought, and diligently searching for a team ACTUALLY closer to his daughter’s medical team. WRONG! The retrospectroscope, and later statements, has shown this to be total fabrication and an attempt to justify his actions.

Last Year: It was a win-win situation for both sides, neither the great loss to the Jazz, nor the great magnanimous gesture by the Jazz, as portrayed in the media, but a sound roster move. Financially, Fish takes a small hit on his salary, but how many millions do you need? He’s fixed for life either way. The Jazz got rid of an older player with an un-tradable contract, and Fish gets his freedom.

This Year: It remains a great move for the Jazz, a great pickup for the Lakers and a better situation for Fisher. How many teams, in similar situations, are doing costly buyouts, taking poor/troubled players or bloated contracts? The Jazz got out of this unscathed and looking to the future.

This Year: It’s just too bad he was instrumental in the Jazz playoff exit. Any team but the hated Lakers, and this would have been perfect! It sure beats a buyout.

Last Year: If Kevin O’Connor didn’t have some back-room discussions with Derek to facilitate this, I’d be surprised. If he did, he deserves an award!

This Year: Kevin still deserves an award a year later. Letting Fish go, thus allowing Brewer’s development, Williams leadership to flourish, freeing up salary space, and a roster spot, plus, bringing in Ronnie Price were all great moves. None of that would have happened without Fisher’s release.

The Jazz are a younger, rising team, with even better potential, than when Fish was here. They are still a work in progress, but better off than they were before the season started last year.

Jazzaholic

4 Comments

Jared Conger on August 29, 2008 said:

any LA fans out there today?

buahahahahaha!

yes, i still dislike Fish. I loathed him before he played for the Jazz, I aplauded him with baited breath while he played here, and I booed him last year.

but i would like to thank him for the help in dwill’s maturation, and in letting us land the highflying act that is Brewer/Price.

but i still boo you dfish. i still boo.

thanks,
laker-hater

JayD on August 29, 2008 said:

Well here I am again , with my opinion . I have always liked Fisher , but I do agree that he never gave the Jazz his full potental ability , and then he went to the Lakers and played alot better . It may be that the Lakers are a better fit for him than the Jazz , but it is still dissappointing to say the least .
I didnt realize that his daughter stayed in New York , if that is the case then he deffinatly went the wrong way . But as you said with him leaving it brought out the best in D-Will and co.
He probably will always get booed in Utah , that is the nature of the Jazz fans . Look at what they did to Mailman when he left Utah to persue a ring that he probably would never have gotten here in Utah had he stayed .
So with that all things happen for a reason , see what happens this year .
Go Jazz !!! We beleive !!!!!

Linda McFarland on September 01, 2008 said:

I would love to say I TOLD YOU SO last year but since I am a nice quiet Jazz fan I won’t do that. Great blog Jazzaholic!!!!!!!!

TheAgMan on September 04, 2008 said:

I’m definitely with Jazzaholic on “anybody but the hated Lakers.” I can’t believe that the Fish went to the hated-Lakers but I still have to give props to the man who made the NBA finals feel like a WWE wrestling showdown by showing up half-way through the match and running down the tunnel like he was going to destroy whoever got in his way. That was one of my favorite Jazz moments in history.

Leave Your Comment

How do I get an avatar for my comments?
It is easy and completely free. Just go to Gravatar.com and sign-up with your email address. Gravatar is globally recognized, so your avatar will show on every Gravatar-enabled website or blog.