The Pau Gasol sweepstakes are over. Gasol is now a Laker.
The Lakers acquired the one time All Star center from Memphis in exchange for center Kwame Brown, guard Jarvis Crittendon and first round draft picks in 2008 and 2010.
Gasol will play center until Andrew Bynum returns from injury. Gasol is expected to play power forward upon Bynum's return.
Drive and Dish has never been overly impressed with Pau Gasol. Sure, he's an agile, skilled seven foot forward. But he's not much of a presence on the block or under the basket. The Spanish Gasol exemplifies the stereotype of the European big man as a soft, offensive minded (read: defensively deficient), perimeter scorer.
That said, with a line up that will feature Kobe Bryant, Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol, the Lakers now have some serious firepower.
Gasol won't be expected to provide a presence down low. Bynum already has that role down. Gasol's perimeter oriented game will fit in with what the Lakers already have in place. Plus, his size, agility and ability to score from outside will create match up problems for teams like Phoenix, San Antonio and Utah. And Gasol will be able to draw opposing power forwards out from under the basket.
The Lakers appear to be a team on the upswing.
Posts
