It’s make or break time for the Los Angeles Lakers, as reported via our own Brent Kitchin, Pau Gasol is out for a minimum of 4 weeks with a right foot injury, they are currently sitting 10th in the Western conference 3 games behind the Houston Rockets. Not only that the injury concerns hampering Howards game and the Loss of their energetic backup pf/c Jordan hill for the year makes the Lakers in desperate need to make some major franchise decisions.
The suggestion is trade Pau Gasol. With minimum of 13 games to play in the next 4 weeks for the Lakers while Gasol is out, this is the best and most feasible way to find an excuse to make a major trade. My reason for this option is Dwight Howard, the Lakers made some huge decisions to acquire Howard in a 3 team trade before the season started. But I ask the question can Howard play with a traditional Pf like Gasol? I look at the history and say NO.
The success Howard created at Orlando made him a hero, but what surrounded him in those teams? One of the largest contracts NBA has seen in a huge signing of Rashard Lewis what sort of player is he a stretch 4 plays on the perimeter rarely posts up or gets to the paint, what came next Ryan Anderson debatably the purest perimeter shooter in the game right now and again a stretch 4 player. I’ll even look at the 2008 Beijing Olympic team with Howard starting at the centre Coach K stretched the floor with Lebron at the 4 for most the tournament with Bosh coming in as back up centre. Then look at the horrible play the Lakers have had with Gasol and Howard playing together and there record shows they don’t work together in the Lakers system.
When you blow your team up and trade out the next best centre in the game in Andrew Bynum you have committed to Howard as your future, so while Gasol is injured and still has 3-4 years of great basketball in him with value beside his name, trade him. The best option right now and out on the market is Andrea Bargnani from the Toronto raptors. I think a package of Bargnani and Landry Fields for Pau Gasol works for both teams so well it’s silly not to make it work. Imagine a Raptors team of Lowry, DeRozan, Gay, Gasol and Valunciunas with Ross, Anderson, Pietrus and Johnson off the bench that’s an instant finals playing team in the east. And look at what the Lakers get, a stretch 4-5 player who plays mid range and beyond, averages over 15.4pts a game and rebounds the ball, they also get some HUGE and valuable bench help they really need with Fields and most importantly these 2 players work with D’antonis offense and Howards offensive game.
L.A. Lakers are championships or bust year in year out make this trade and I truly believe they are championship contenders again even if they finish 6th or below in the west come finals time.
Travis Hewish
-For more breaking news and stories visit our website at www.breakingthebackboards.com
Breaking the Backboards 