I, for one, think that would be a terrible move for the Lakers; as would any trade involving the departure of the Spaniard.
Why?
Although Gasol hasn’t put up the type of numbers Lakers fans are accustomed to seeing (a season average of 14.0 points on 42.5 percent shooting, 9.9 rebounds, and 3.2 assists), Gasol is still an intricate part of the team.
Josh Smith’s numbers (a season average of 15.6 points on 41.3 percent shooting, 8.3 rebounds, and 3.7 assists) are also a regression from his previous seasons, which could motivate both teams to make a trade for a fresh start for each player.
Additionally, Smith is considerably younger than Gasol at almost 27 years of age compared with Gasol’s 32 years.
Just a week ago, Gasol’s future never seemed so secure as Phil Jackson was poised to once again take the helm as head coach, with Pau set to once again be a focal point of the Triangle offense.
However, the Lakers did a complete 180 and hired Mike D’Antoni whose fast-paced, run-and-gun style of offense generally requires a certain brand of player.
Gasol doesn’t necessarily fit that brand, and Smith does.
However, I would urge Lakers management to not make a serious mistake by trading away their seven-foot power forward.
Perhaps Smith, or any other athletic power forward would fit the fast-paced offense better and make it look prettier, but it may not be the best option for the team in the long run.
It could be a benefit during the regular season, but what about in the playoffs when the game slows down?
Next Page: The Skill Set
The playoffs are exactly where Gasol’s unique set of fundamental skills such as shooting, posting up, passing, and overall basketball IQ come into play; during a half-court, grind it out type of game.
Gasol’s unselfishness and ability to make the correct play have proved to be invaluable throughout two championship runs in 2009 and 2010.
Additionally, his interior passing when at the high-post or low-post was an asset for Andrew Bynum over the years, and continues to be so for Dwight Howard.
Gasol and Smith have a similar frequency of shots taken at the rim (300 last season for Pau compared with 363 for Josh), and have a similar field goal percentage from that area (.687 for Pau compared with .686 for Josh).
Smith takes most of his shots from the 16 foot to three-point range (430 in 2012), which could be one reason the Lakers are pursuing him. His ability to space the floor would help open up avenues for Dwight Howard.
However, whereas Smith takes long jumpers most frequently and gets to the rim as well, Gasol mixes it up, taking a relatively evenly allocated amount of shots from all distances (300 at the rim, 290 between three to nine feet, 178 between 10 to 15 feet, and 259 between 15 feet to the three-point line).
The major factor here is that Gasol shoots a considerably higher percentage from every single range compared with Smith, as of last season. Therefore, Gasol can actually space the floor better than Smith, as long as he’s taking the shots.
Additionally, no big man in the league other than Tim Duncan possesses the kinds of abilities Gasol does in terms of being able to shoot, face up, post up, utilize both hands, and pass the ball.
Next Page: The Half-Court Abilities
The Half-Court Abilities
Speaking of Duncan, Gasol is the player I liken most to The Big Fundamental. No, he may not be on the Hall of Fame level that Duncan is on quite yet, but Gasol possesses most of the skills Duncan–who is widely considered the greatest power forward to ever play the game–does.
You don’t see the Spurs putting Tim Duncan on the trading block, do you?
I’m not saying they’re in the same league at all, but even throughout the Spurs’ evolution in which they transitioned from a defensive minded veteran team to a faster paced scoring team, Duncan has maintained his productivity.
Similarly, come playoff time, Duncan is relied upon to create offense in the half-court set when his team needs it, as well as provide solid defense in the half-court set. The same should be valued with Gasol.
Yes, the Lakers have Dwight Howard, but he is nowhere close to as skilled as Gasol is in the post. And even though Gasol won’t be playing much time at the Center position this season because of Howard, he’s still extremely talented at his natural position.
On top of that, if–knock on wood–Howard goes down with an injury, no other team has the luxury of sliding a skilled big man such as Gasol down to the Center position so seamlessly; as Gasol has done so many times in the past.
The Lakers are built to withstand an injury to the Center position with the likes of either Jordan Hill or Antawn Jamison moving into the Power Forward slot, while Gasol takes over duties at the Center position. Josh Smith would be severely undersized at that position, with less post abilities.
Next Page: The Size Factor
The Size Factor
That brings us to another point. If the Lakers traded for anyone of lesser height than Gasol, the size advantage the Lakers have boasted for several years would basically turn into a size disadvantage.
The pairing between Gasol and Howard works so beautifully because if ever Howard were too undersized to deal with an opponent, Gasol could simply switch places with him.
In essence, even though he’s the starting Power Forward, the Lakers still have one legitimate seven-footer in the starting lineup.
Trading for Smith would seriously hinder the Lakers in that department, as their front court would stand at 6’7″ (Metta World Peace), 6’9″ (Smith), and 6’11 (Howard, who actually appears to be closer to 6’10”).
Sure, maybe the smaller lineup would work better for the “Showtime” aspect of it all, but remember that guy whose statue was just erected on Saturday? I think his name was Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and he was a part of the greatest display of “Showtime” at 7’2″ and won titles in his late 30s; his last one at age 41 alongside the run-and-gun team.
Again, I’m not trying to compared Gasol to the great Abdul-Jabbar, but just explain that a run-and-gun type of offense has worked before with an old, slow player on a team before, and worked to perfection, actually.
It would have been a problem with last season’s lineup of Gasol and Bynum, but now the Lakers have Dwight Howard who can fill the lane better than any Center in the league today, and better than many wing players, in reality.
That leaves room for one relatively slow seven-footer on the team, in my book.
The Lakers don’t necessarily have the size they had last season, but Howard is an obvious defensive upgrade over Bynum, and teams still have a lot of difficulty scoring over the Lakers’ two big men.
To trade Pau for a player of lesser size would certainly make things easier for opponents to score in the lane. Sure, Smith’s athleticism would help out in transition defense, but come playoff time, I’d rather have a seven-footer would can help plug the lane and rotate over to cover Dwight Howard when he leaves his man and goes to help out the rest of his team during half-court sets.
Simply put, the Lakers have a size advantage over the league and would be crazy to give that up and put themselves in the exact opposite position.
Next Page: The Final Buzzer
The Final Buzzer
At the end of the day, the Lakers are certainly an older team, and could be looking to get younger.
However, I feel the tradeoff between a player five years younger with less size and skill wouldn’t necessarily be the best move for a deep playoff run.
At some point in time, the team is going to need a solid half-court go-to player to bail them out, and Gasol is that guy.
From my viewpoint, you simply don’t trade a player of Gasol’s caliber unless you absolutely have to. No other big man in the league possesses the kinds of skills Gasol does, which is a serious advantage for the Lakers.
Maybe he’s not going to be asked to utilize all of those skills on a regular basis, but I can guarantee you come April, May, and June, when the Lakers are in a bind and the run-and-gun style of offense isn’t working as well, Gasol’s number will definitely be called upon to produce in the half-court set.
*Statistics provided by basketball-reference.com