It's an unofficial position, to be sure, but it may be the toughest job on the Lakers.

Luckily for the team, it falls on the shoulders of Derek Fisher.

"I think people are keeping their fingers crossed," says the veteran guard, who begins his second stint with Team Dysfunction tonight, "that I can come in and be an impartial voice of reason."

There are plenty of places where this would not be a difficult task, or even a necessary one. On the Lakers, it could be akin to manning the pumps on the Titanic. You wonder how many people in the organization value reason, or would recognize it if it bit them on their well-paid behinds.

A star who values reason, after all, wouldn't request a trade — because he would presumably know his contract makes him untradeable, or that if a deal could be constructed, it would strip his new team of the players which would have made it an attractive place to go.

An owner who values reason wouldn't use the opening of training camp to announce he was, in fact, entertaining offers for the aforementioned star, giving new life to a disruptive, distracting — and fading — story.

And a coach wouldn't chide the owner's son on one hand, then publicly question the commitment of that same star on the eve of the season on the other. Reason suggests it's hard to win fight with a guy signing your $10 million paychecks, or with one making more than twice that amount.

But since that's how Kobe Bryant, Jerry Buss and Phil Jackson have acted, it suggests a couple things about that Voice of Reason job: There aren't a lot of competing candidates for the position, and it's going to be an uphill battle.

That's OK with Fisher. Frustrating though the task may be, he's particularly suited to it, given a mix of personal traits unique on the Lakers. He knows how to be upbeat. He understands professionalism. And he has no particular need to occupy the spotlight.

He also isn't driven by statistics, which is probably a good thing. There's no category for "turmoil avoided" on the NBA.com stat page, and when it comes to more traditional numbers — points, assists, and the like — you wonder how much Fisher will have left to provide them if he's trying to putting out fires in the Lakers' dynamite shed, er, locker room.

"If you read the papers — which I'm sure a lot of people do — I would say that's probably 75-25 in terms of the reason why I'm really here," says Fisher of his elder-statement and calmer-of-the-waters role. "I think people could really care less how much I score and what my performance level is." He laughs. "Which obviously takes a lot of pressure off of me."

Fisher, of course, has had the full graduate course in NBA personal dynamics. His first tour of duty as a Laker embraced the whole of the Shaq-and-Kobe era, which not only makes him qualified to deal with this team, but perhaps to broker a settlement in the Paul McCartney-Heather Mills divorce.

If he learned anything during that time, it's that there's a direct relationship between feuds 'n' fussing and wins and losses.

"What it really comes down to when you play team sports is the success that's happening on the floor," he says. "That kind of seems to be the one thing that either sends everybody into a tailspin or brings everybody together. Generally, even if a guy has a problem wishing he played five or six more minutes, or he's not getting enough shot opportunities. it seems he can kind of hold them in a little better if you're winning seven out of 10 games as opposed to four out of 10."

That being the case, the Lakers' early schedule — with 11 of 17 games against playoff teams — is probably even more important than it seems, not only in terms of winning, but to improve the odds of moderating the soap-opera aspects of a season that could be drenched in suds.

And that, in turn, is why Fisher has already, in his behind-the-scenes way, called a couple of team meetings. (It was Luke Walton who revealed this, not Fisher.) They were, he says, "just kind of quick thoughts and tidbits about our approach to things not to be complacent in terms of thinking that come Oct. 30, we're just going to be able to kind of flip a switch and play the way we need to play."

While Jackson doesn't officially endorse Fisher's Voice of Reason role — what coach would embrace the idea that he needs help in that regard? — he certainly recognizes the prodigal guard's value as a mentor and leader.

Referencing the guards the Lakers have taken in the last three drafts — Sasha Vujacic, Jordan Farmar and Javaris Crittenton — Jackson says, "We know he will help them develop as a captain, as a leader of this team. He knows that.

"And I think that's one of the big factors in having him — not only how he plays, but in his intelligent approach to the game, his demeanor about the game. I think he'll help them."

If Fisher succeeds as Voice of Reason, he won't just help those young players. He'll help Jackson — and Bryant, and just about everyone in the organization — make this season more about basketball, and less about drama.

If you're a fan of Fisher, or the Lakers, wish him luck.

He's going to need it.

— Contact Star columnist David Lassen at dlassen@VenturaCountyStar.com.