FanHouse Derek Fisher

Tip-Off Timer counts down the days until the first game of the 2009-10 season. On Friday, there are 4 days remaining.

Point guard Derek Fisher doesn't wear No. 4 for the Los Angeles Lakers, but he probably should. It's the number that has defined him.

Four has meant good fortune for Fisher.

His catch-and-shoot basket with .4 remaining in Game 5 was the defining moment for the upset of the defending champion San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference final of 2004.

The Lakers have until October 31 to offer Jordan Farmar a contract extension, but a report in the Los Angeles Times says the team isn't planning to do so. What that means for Farmar, of course, is that this season will be one where he'll be trying to increase his value on the semi-open market, by putting up some numbers that are larger than his career averages of 7.8 points and 2.4 assists per game.

Playing on a very deep team that's looking to defend a championship (rather than showcase individual talents), this is going to be very difficult to do. And that has to make you wonder if Farmar will still be on the Lakers' roster once the trade deadline for this season has come and gone.

Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.

Kobe Bryant is the national spokesperson for After School All Stars, a nation-wide, one-of-a-kind, after-school activity for students living in rough areas. From sports to music to arts, After School All Stars is free. In this FanHouse Exclusive we visit the Lakers' practice facility in El Segundo, where we catch up with Kobe, his teammates Sasha Vujacic and Derek Fisher, and two of Kobe's friends from the Clippers -- Eric Gordon and Chris Kaman. The stars were there as 2K Sports handed ASAS a check for $25,000 and set up video games for the students and basketball stars.

Check out the video after the jump.

Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.

Actor Tom Arnold has been a longtime NBA fan. In fact, you can say he is far from the fly-by-night Hollywood "fan". In this FanHouse exclusive we talk to Tom about being Shaq's next-door neighbor, who is the best player in NBA history (the answer will surprise you), and who, in his opinion, should start for the Lakers.

Check out the video after the jump.

Hornets guard Chris Paul may not be worried about replacement referees coming to the NBA, but Paul's union apparently feels differently. Derek Fisher, the Laker who heads the National Basketball Players Association, put out a statement Tuesday supporting the referees union in its labor dispute with the league.

In the statement, Fisher called the implementation of B-level referees "unacceptable" and said that replacement refs "could compromise the integrity of the game." He also asks the league to treat the refs fairly, presumably because Fisher would like the league to treat players fairly in ongoing collective bargaining agreement negotiations.

Who doesn't like a list, especially on a Monday morning when that's about all you can handle?

The news isn't good on the NBA officials' front. The league has locked the refs out and it appears they're ready to go the route of replacement refs. We think that's a bad idea, but if it's going to happen, here's offering some help to the new guys.

Keep your eyes out for these players, the top-five foulers in the NBA:

Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.

Four-time NBA champion Derek Fisher has hit some amazing shots on the basketball court to help the Los Angeles Lakers win, but this shot you're about to see is just as impressive. As part of a promotion to announce a 3-on-3 basketball tournament taking place at the Nokia Plaza across from the Staples Center next month, Fisher went up to the third floor of a neighboring building to hit a 33-foot shot. We also get the reaction of actor and Lakers fan David Arquette.

Check out the video after the jump.

Kobe Bryant was named the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player, and being the best player on the team that just won the championship, it's tough to disagree. It was Kobe's first time winning the award, because it went to Shaquille O'Neal the first three times that the Lakers won the title with Bryant on the roster.

Bryant averaged better than 32 points, five rebounds, and seven assists for the series, so again, his numbers validate the fact that he's taking home the award. But this was truly a team effort, and there are others that are arguably just as deserving.

Shaquille O'Neal may be headed to Cleveland or may team with Amar'e Stoudemire to push the Lakers in the Pacific Division next year. Either way, it appears his beef with Kobe Bryant is officially over.

After the Lakers cruised to a 99-86 win for their 15th NBA championship and Bryant's first without O'Neal, the Big Aristotle gave props to Kobe via Twitter:

They have to win four.

I mean, we all know they will. You could point to several moments when this NBA season ended, but Derek Fisher draining a pull-up-jumper-in-transition three was pretty much the final nail in the coffin. You can't blow leads like the Magic did. But they did. But if the Lakers and Kobe Bryant want to cement themselves as everything we've already anointed them as, they have to win four games.

So here we are, and tonight will either be a mercy-killing as the Lakers end it and begin celebrating yet another in a long line of championships, or Orlando will kickstart the ticker and pray for a miracle. Join us for the celebration/funeral, at 8PM EST.