Pau Gasol, Los Angeles Lakers and the potential trade – NBA Feature
The fortunes of the Los Angeles Lakers took an immediate turn back in the 2007-2008 season, a time when the franchise was struggling big time to secure the top spot in the Western Conference. The reason was the block buster trade with the Memphis Grizzlies which brought the 7 footer power forward Pau Gasol in the Purple and Gold line-up.
In the years that followed, Gasol formed one of the history’s most formidable duo with the legendary Kobe Bryant and marshalled the Lakers to NBA Finals three times on a trot. In the process, Los Angeles Lakers landed two successive NBA Championships in 2009 and 2010 which tagged them as the best team of the league yet again and so the legacy continued.
The acquisition of the Pau emerged as the most significant deal in the franchise history, since Lakers acquired the big man Shaquille O’Neal during the 1996-1997 season. Gasol not only responded to the famed triangle offensive scheme of the Hall of Famer coach Phil Jackson, the All-Star also became an integral part of the team and sparked the franchise with his extra special talent in no time.
In fact, in the 2009-10 Finals, when the Boston Celtics bounced back from a three game deficit to take the series to Game-7, it was Pau who turned the heat on in the decider and clichéd yet another title for the Lakers. The former Memphis Grizzlies superstar averaged more than 18 points and 9 rebounds per game in all of the seasons he played in the Lakers uniform.
However, such is the cruel nature of this game and its fans, especially the Los Angeles fans, that all of his contributions were forgotten after a dramatic downfall in his performance in this year’s play-offs as Lakers gunned for a three-peat. Gasol average dropped down to 13.1 points and 7.8 rebounds per game which not only hampered the team from securing another title, but also resulted in the Lakers succumbing to the most embarrassing defeat in the Western Conference semi-finals. The Dallas Mavericks swept out the two-time defending champions comprehensively.
The shocking meltdown also marked an abysmal end to the splendid career of Jackson who was heading his last season as the Lakers coach. It became pretty evident that Pau was not giving his best on the court and there were definitely some chemistry problems that became the major reason for the Lakers unexpected demise.
And now during the off-season, the thing that has intrigued us all is that whether the franchise will go with the option to trade Gasol.
Last time when Lakers’ were struggling, it was the trade of Gasol that brought the team back on the track. The question is that whether trading away Gasol in the next season will repeat the history for the franchise.
Looking at the option available in the free agency, there is nobody, except perhaps Tyson Chandler, with his finals touch, who can match the skill sets of Gasol. However, in terms of trade, there are many options available, including that of Dwight Howards and his own brother Marc Gasol, who plays for the Memphis Grizzlies. However, as of now, everything is in a limbo due to the lockout. The Lakers though will have enough time to give it a final thought to decide the future of Gasol.
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