DALLAS — At least three times before Tuesday night’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said he completely understood Derek Fisher’s plight.
Fisher signed a contract Monday with the Oklahoma City Thunder, 65 days after telling the Mavs to release him so he could go home to Southern California and spend time with his family. Cuban explained that he believes there was an urgent need for Fisher to leave the Mavs and be with family, but now it’s OK for him to join the Thunder.“His kids are older now,” Cuban said. “It’s easier to fly in and out of Oklahoma City than it is to Dallas — I understand that.“That’s just a decision a parent has to make. I understand completely, the kids get older and they understand the dad’s job a little bit better.”Fisher signed a free agent contract with the Mavs on Nov. 29, but the Mavs released him on Dec. 22 — at Fisher’s request — in part because he said he needed to spend more time with his family. Center Brandan Wright said he would take Fisher at his word and respect him for what he said.“He said he had some family issues, and I’m good with that,” Wright said. “A lot of people are going to be upset because it’s just a few months later.“He was a great teammate when he was here, and it was unfortunate that he had to leave, but I have no beef with him, with what he did and what he’s done by re-signing with the Thunder just a couple of months later. He has to do what he has to do for his family and for himself.”Coach Rick Carlisle said it appears as though Oklahoma City is a good situation for Fisher, and he wasn’t about to get into a cat fight with a former player who only played nine games for the Mavs.“He and Mark had an agreement when he came here that he would come, and if things got to where he needed to leave for family reasons he would be able to do that,” Carlisle said. “That's what he said was the situation and I'm going to take him at his word.“Look he’s one of those guys, he’s been in this league for a long time, won a lot of rings, and my opinion is he’s earned the right to do what’s best for him. If Oklahoma City is a good situation for him, then that’s what he should do. We've got to carry on, and we can't be concerned about things like that.”Nowitzki improvingBefore Tuesday’s game against Milwaukee, coach Rick Carlisle said Dirk Nowitzki is close to returning to the level he played at before knee surgery. But Carlisle also cautioned:“It doesn’t mean that he’s going to have to take on the load and carry the team by himself. We’ve still got to have a lot of guys contributing, we’re still going to have to use him on the floor as a screener, as a spacer.“We’re going to go to him — that’s no secret. But we’ve got to still have five, six guys in double figures to be a good basketball team.”Mavs out on Lakers?After getting burned by ex-Laker Lamar Odom last season and ex-Laker Derek Fisher this season, owner Cuban was asked if he’s through acquiring ex-Lakers.“For the protection of my [Twitter] timeline,” Cuban said, “I’m not going to say anything.”Have more to add? News tip? Tell us
