Rick Fox was 'willing to risk reinjuring' himself to start on the loaded 2003-04 Lakers
In the summer of 2003, after the Los Angeles Lakers failed to win a fourth straight NBA championship, they signed future Hall of Famers Gary Payton and Karl Malone. With the two joining Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, it seemed to many that the Lakers had a team for the ages.
One question going into the season was who would be the fifth starter at the small forward position. In the past, it had been Rick Fox, a consummate role player who excelled in multiple phases of the game and sacrificed his individual production for the good of the team.
Fox suffered a severe foot injury during the 2003 playoffs, but he admitted he badly wanted to be that "fifth Beatle" on what was supposed to be a dominant team.
Via Bleacher Report:
"Returning from a torn ligament in my foot, I did everything I could to make it to training camp," Fox said about his desire to be a starter in the 2003-04 campaign. "It was unrealistic for me to think I could participate, but I'll be damned, I tried. I wanted to be in that starting lineup as the fifth Beatle. I was willing to risk reinjuring myself to make sure I was part of what we all thought was going to be one of the greatest teams ever."
The 6-foot-7 veteran forward was an invaluable member of the Lakers when they won three straight world titles in the early 2000s thanks to his defense, 3-point shooting, post entry passing and overall physicality. But his tank was empty after the foot injury he sustained in 2003.
He had averaged 9.0 points in 26.5 minutes a game over the previous six seasons with L.A., but once he made his return in late January, he only mustered 4.8 points in 22.3 minutes per game on 39.2% shooting from the field and 24.6% from 3-point range.
That Lakers team suffered from many key injuries throughout the season, and despite reaching the NBA Finals for the fourth time in five years, they got steamrolled there by the Detroit Pistons in five games. Ultimately, a big reason they didn't win it all was their utter lack of depth, and Fox's decline contributed to that deficiency.
He was traded to the Boston Celtics during the summer of 2004, but due to his foot injury and other ailments, he decided to retire before the start of the 2004-05 season.
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