Lakers Find Magic In Center Gasol
Addition of Spaniard Has Turned L.A. Into a Championship Contender

By Michael Lee
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, April 23, 2008

LOS ANGELES -- The moment he heard that the Los Angeles Lakers had acquired Pau Gasol from Memphis, Kobe Bryant sent his new teammate a text message, in Spanish, that read: "Welcome to the team. Happy to have you as part of the family. Let's go get this ring."

It may have been a bit ambitious for Bryant to expect Gasol to help the Lakers win a championship, considering Gasol's postseason résumé includes three playoff sweeps. But the message immediately put the Spaniard on alert that expectations in Los Angeles are much greater than they were in Memphis. It was a challenge that Gasol was willing to accept.

"I'm never afraid of a big stage. That's what I want," Gasol said recently. "I want to fight for the best of the best and prove myself at that level. I'm having a real chance to accomplish one of my main goals and that's to go after a championship."

After helping the Lakers secure the No. 1 seed in the most intense Western Conference playoff race ever, Gasol's immediate goal was simply to win a game in the playoffs. He finally accomplished that goal on Sunday for the first time in 13 tries, scoring 36 points with 16 rebounds and eight assists in the Lakers' 128-114 victory over the Denver Nuggets.

Gasol also stole the top billing from Bryant -- a first in the Lakers' post-Shaquille O'Neal era. For Bryant, who missed the playoffs his first season without O'Neal and lost to Phoenix in the first round the past two seasons, sharing the stage with Gasol is not a problem. "You always have to have a one-two punch," Bryant said recently. "That's how you win championships. You can't do it with one superstar alone."

Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is Wednesday night in Los Angeles.

Gasol likely wouldn't have become a Laker if third-year center Andrew Bynum hadn't suffered a bone bruise and dislocated his left knee on Jan. 13 in a game against the Grizzlies. At the time of his injury, the 20-year-old Bynum was having a breakout campaign, and the Lakers were 25-11.

With Kwame Brown replacing Bynum at center, the Lakers went 3-5 over the next two weeks.

Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak -- whom Bryant openly criticized last summer for failing to ship Bynum in exchange for Jason Kidd -- quietly worked out a deal for Gasol in exchange for Brown, Javaris Crittenton, Aaron McKie, the draft rights to Gasol's brother, Marc, and two first-round draft picks. Asked if he would've made the trade with a healthy Bynum, Kupchak said: "That's a good question. I don't know.

"When Andrew got hurt, we became more aggressive, but we were having discussions before he got hurt," Kupchak said. "We desperately needed a big player. We really could've gotten away from winning, the way we were. We didn't want to lose another season."

The Lakers couldn't face the prospect of possibly missing the playoffs with Bryant able to opt out of his contract in 2009 -- or make more noise to get traded in the offseason. Instead, the 7-foot Gasol arrived in Los Angeles and had an immediate impact, blending seamlessly into the triangle offense with his ability to pass, shoot and run the floor.

The Lakers finished the season 27-9 after the trade and they were 22-5 with Gasol in the lineup. He missed 11 games, nine because of sprained left ankle.

"This has been great and amazing for me," Gasol said. "I'm truly happy to have this opportunity. I didn't enjoy the part of being hurt and not being able to play. But now I'm back on board."

Bryant said he never had any concerns about Gasol adjusting from a small market like Memphis to the pressure that comes with being a Laker. "You have to understand: This guy, in Spain, is the greatest Spanish player to ever play," he said. "He's used to being in the fishbowl. This is nothing new to him."

"He's the perfect fit for what we do, we didn't have to adjust anything. We really didn't give any key components to our ballclub to get him," Bryant said. "A lot of times, it is that one move, that one piece that puts you over the top and for us, it seems that way. I felt before that, with Andrew I felt like we had what it took to win a championship. Bringing Pau was like the coup de grâce."

Gasol won the rookie of the year award in 2002 and made an all-star appearance in 2006 with the Grizzlies. But most of his time in Memphis was filled with disappointment. It took him three years to make the playoffs, and the Grizzlies sank back to the bottom after he broke his foot while leading Spain to the 2006 FIBA World Championship. Gasol asked for a trade last season, but then-team president Jerry West (who spent almost two decades in a similar capacity with the Lakers) never found a deal he was willing to make.

The Grizzlies again were set for the lottery this season and needed to part with their best and most expensive asset to start all over. "Our present situation wasn't going anywhere," Grizzlies first-year general manager Chris Wallace said in a telephone interview. "It's obviously had a positive impact on the Lakers, but that's not my concern."

Bynum has yet to return from his knee injury, but the Lakers are hoping that Gasol can have the same impact Rasheed Wallace had on Detroit. He joined the Pistons in a midseason trade and helped them finish the regular season 24-6 and win the 2004 NBA Finals. In both instances, neither team had to sacrifice a core player to get an all-star talent. "We'll see if that happens or not," Lakers Coach Phil Jackson said. "But it was a similar situation, a guy who fit a need."

Now Gasol wants the Lakers to help him put his postseason disappointments behind him.

"My playoff experience has been tough, to say it lightly," Gasol said prior to the playoffs. "I want to be successful. I want to get rid of that monkey on my back and really play well, move forward and win series."