Pau Thread: Surgery a success; now rehab & rest for 12 weeks

tigerjeterkobe · by **tigerjeterkobe** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 6:38 am

The fumble-itis, the flip shots, the lack of elevation for offense rebounds, and the obvious dislike for contact may not be things he can change.

The hesitation is something he can change. He can look to score more. That is ok. Not that his interior passing is bad. Looking for dwight and Hill is ok. Looking to pass out to Morris and Ron is not. also, he is looking for Kobe too much - playing hot potato. Nash may address some of that so everyone is not trying to find Kobe.

There just needs to be a fire lit for Gasol. Kobe has physical limitations too. But he is aggressive, confident, and saavy. Can Gasol just be more physical in the paint and try to dunk more and draw fouls??

The free throws -- there is NO EXCUSE for that. He is just so NOT CLUTCH.

Rlease clark, Sign Kenyon, and reduce Gasol's minutes.

Doc Brown · by **Doc Brown** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 7:32 am

Pau jumps as high as a 7th grader trying his hardest to slap the backboard when he does a layup.

XXIV · by **XXIV** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 9:04 am

A very lazy effort by Pau and it's likely caused by the amount of minutes he's been playing on top of the back to back itself. MDA should really consider having Jamison at the 4 spot where he's really effective in the post and he could also serve as a stretch 4 to Dwight when needed. Pau needs his minutes to be reduced and unless we blow out every team it's not going to happen without playing the bench more.

khmrP · by **khmrP** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 9:22 am

weak, pretty much sums up Pau and every faucet of his game.

KareemTheGreat33 · by **KareemTheGreat33** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 9:27 am

Chicago now is the time. Give us Deng

Forward Three · by **Forward Three** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 11:16 am

Anyone else getting the impression that Pau kind of wants to be a point guard these days? he just seems to want to hang out on the perimeter, pass the ball more and when it comes to banging bodies in the paint, contesting shots on the low block or rotating to help defense, it's like he just can't be bothered. I'm completely okay with Pau being a 'perimeter big' if, and only if, he gets back to hitting his 16-20 footers as well as KG or Rashard Lewis does.

Maybe he's in a weird place after having been the unquestioned secondary option for a few years and now he is kind of option 2b? I don't know what it is. He loves dishing to Dwight, which is good, he still has his left hook, which is good, and in general his touch is still as good as ever(Except on those 18 footers) but his poise just isn't what it used to be, and I think he knows it.

Forward Three · by **Forward Three** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 11:20 am

tigerjeterkobe wrote:The fumble-itis, the flip shots, the lack of elevation for offense rebounds, and the obvious dislike for contact may not be things he can change.

The hesitation is something he can change. He can look to score more. That is ok. Not that his interior passing is bad. Looking for dwight and Hill is ok. Looking to pass out to Morris and Ron is not. also, he is looking for Kobe too much - playing hot potato. Nash may address some of that so everyone is not trying to find Kobe.

Well put, I have to wonder if he has stepped off the gas a little in part because Dwight and Kobe have been so potent offensively and he figures he only needs to score if needed more so than as a requisite? I mean, we all know Pau can pour them on when he gets going. But I think you're right about that operative need to know htat it's okay for him to go for it.

borri · by **borri** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 11:51 am

Been saying this since Brown got axed.

Pau is now a poor version of Channing Frye. If Pau is just gonna stand there and shoot jumpers, give me Frye instead.

Rooscooter · by **Rooscooter** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 12:05 pm

Pau looks like he's slowing down to me. He needs shorter stints right now. He also needs to be rotated almost as a back up center to Howard and not be on the floor with him as much.

If Jamison was playing well I'd almost put him at the starting 4 and bring Pau off the bench.

dj vitus · by **dj vitus** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 12:26 pm

The Rock wrote:when he does play Center with the 2nd unit he doesn't post up. Whos fault is that? We can argue all we want but when he gets the minutes where he gets to be the primary post uption he isn't aggressive, heck Hill gets 2-3 post up scores a game and Pau rarely does that

Hes clearly in Lamar Odom territory now. You just hope he gets you 10 rebounds and minimizes the mental mistakes...didnt happen tonight 2/9 FG and 1/4 FT along with atrocious defense

And for a guy whos being praised all these years as a skilled center he cant make an open jumpshot...this is just getting ridiculous now. HE cant catch passes in a reliable manner anymore, way too many times he fumbles it.

http://hoopdata.com/player.aspx?name=Pau%20Gasol

His FG% is 42% at the rim, 16% from 3 to 9 feet, 17% from 10 to 15 feet. Lots of alarming stats. Hes not mobile anymore and neither is he a dependable scorer. Hes just a good rebounder and passer now thats it...which is what Lamar was to us

We can still win a championship with Pau playing this way because Kobe can be Kobe and Dwight can be Dwight in the big games. IF you get 2 All star level production out of your 2 best players, I think Ron and Nash are more than capable of filling in as your 3rd best scoring option and just letting Pau do the facilitating and rebounding (Which is exactly how we won in 2009 and 2010 with LO). Really sucks to say stuff like that for someone whos getting paid $19 mil a year

He's still 41% from 16-23 feet. :man1:

432J · by **432J** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 12:30 pm

pau is definitely on the decline but there is no doubt he's the key to this team's success

if pau is playing like he did 3-4 years ago on a constant basis, there is no stopping this team. unfortunately we'll rarely ever get that type of production from pau anymore but if he can just play above average basketball constantly they'll be set. we could afford an off night from howard or kobe if pau has it going

Finwë · by **Finwë** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 12:40 pm

borri wrote:Been saying this since Brown got axed.

Pau is now a poor version of Channing Frye. If Pau is just gonna stand there and shoot jumpers, give me Frye instead.

Right, because when Brown was here he was just living in the paint and just taking names. C'mon. Not even in the last season of the triangle was Pau assertive on offense and working hard on the block.
And O isn't even his biggest problem. He's actually decent there. It's his D that's killing us.

JLaker17 · by **JLaker17** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 1:52 pm

We need to get younger, and quite frankly more defense. We might not get one player to equal Gasol's value, but if we can trade for a couple solid ones I think it should be done.

Armani · by **Armani** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 2:58 pm

I think it's fatigue, really. He's not a 35+ MPG player anymore... the thing is, it doesn't look like D'Antoni can trust Jamison in the backup minutes. LA needs a young big man up front instead of Antawn... Sacre won't cut it either.

432J · by **432J** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 3:45 pm

Armani wrote:I think it's fatigue, really. He's not a 35+ MPG player anymore... the thing is, it doesn't look like D'Antoni can trust Jamison in the backup minutes. LA needs a young big man up front instead of Antawn... Sacre won't cut it either.

dan tony needs to acually play jamison before he can trust him. gasol's minutes should be reduced while jamison plays at the 4

idk why dan tony hasn't realized it yet. gasol is not a shooter yet he's spending the majority of his time taking jumpers from 15-20 feet. that isn't his game

Lakerjones · by **Lakerjones** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 4:45 pm

432J wrote:
Armani wrote:I think it's fatigue, really. He's not a 35+ MPG player anymore... the thing is, it doesn't look like D'Antoni can trust Jamison in the backup minutes. LA needs a young big man up front instead of Antawn... Sacre won't cut it either.

dan tony needs to acually play jamison before he can trust him. gasol's minutes should be reduced while jamison plays at the 4

idk why dan tony hasn't realized it yet. gasol is not a shooter yet he's spending the majority of his time taking jumpers from 15-20 feet. that isn't his game

^^ I agree. Since we have a glut of PF's we should platoon them more. Less minutes for Pau at 4 especially as he is going to play some backup 5, too. I'd like to see Jamison first off the bench at 4 then Hill a little later.

Armani · by **Armani** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 5:05 pm

432J wrote:
Armani wrote:I think it's fatigue, really. He's not a 35+ MPG player anymore... the thing is, it doesn't look like D'Antoni can trust Jamison in the backup minutes. LA needs a young big man up front instead of Antawn... Sacre won't cut it either.

dan tony needs to acually play jamison before he can trust him. gasol's minutes should be reduced while jamison plays at the 4

idk why dan tony hasn't realized it yet. gasol is not a shooter yet he's spending the majority of his time taking jumpers from 15-20 feet. that isn't his game

Possibly. Maybe something like this -

Center - Dwight 36 mins, Pau 12 mins
Power Forward - Pau 20 mins, Hill 20 mins, Jamison 8 mins
Small Forward - MWP 34 mins, Jamison 14 mins

Pau logs 32 mins a game this way, which he should be okay with. If Ebanks came back, he could play full-time backup SF to MWP.. this way we don't see Jamison isn't on the floor for 20+ mins. It would be a nice 10 man rotation.

borri · by **borri** on Thu Nov 22, 2012 6:59 pm

Finwë wrote:
borri wrote:Been saying this since Brown got axed.

Pau is now a poor version of Channing Frye. If Pau is just gonna stand there and shoot jumpers, give me Frye instead.

Right, because when Brown was here he was just living in the paint and just taking names. C'mon. Not even in the last season of the triangle was Pau assertive on offense and working hard on the block.
And O isn't even his biggest problem. He's actually decent there. It's his D that's killing us.

Wait, aren't we saying pretty much the same damn thing? Pau is not cutting it.

Finwë · by **Finwë** on Fri Nov 23, 2012 3:07 am

borri wrote:
Finwë wrote:
borri wrote:Been saying this since Brown got axed.

Pau is now a poor version of Channing Frye. If Pau is just gonna stand there and shoot jumpers, give me Frye instead.

Right, because when Brown was here he was just living in the paint and just taking names. C'mon. Not even in the last season of the triangle was Pau assertive on offense and working hard on the block.
And O isn't even his biggest problem. He's actually decent there. It's his D that's killing us.

Wait, aren't we saying pretty much the same damn thing? Pau is not cutting it.

We kinda are, but I was saying Pau settling for low percentage outside shots has much less to do with the coach (be it Brown, D'Antoni or Jackson) and much more to do with him. But yeah, he ain't cutting it.

jimbo327 · by **jimbo327** on Fri Nov 23, 2012 4:33 am

How the hell does Howard only get like 4 FGA??? And both of our big man are under 10 pts each against the Sacto bigs. Those 2 should be feasting on those guys. :bang:

They should both have at least 25pt each.

lkrfn85 · by **lkrfn85** on Fri Nov 23, 2012 10:58 am

Pau actually has been really great in this offense - off of the pick and roll, he often gets the ball in the high post, and has to read the D, and make a decision. He either lobs to Dwight, takes the midrange shot, or finds a shooter. Because of his length, bball IQ, passing ability, and midrange shot, he opens up the floor from the high post, and gets other players the ball in their spots.

Lakerjones · by **Lakerjones** on Fri Nov 23, 2012 11:17 am

jimbo327 wrote:How the hell does Howard only get like 4 FGA??? And both of our big man are under 10 pts each against the Sacto bigs. Those 2 should be feasting on those guys. They should both have at least 25pt each.

Yeah, it was too bad. I did think that Kobe wasn't going to him as much as he should early on (flame me if you want) - although I dunno, they looked like they were trying to do some things they thought they should be doing instead of that loose but natural ball of before.

Couple things jump out, first is that D12 looked absolutely beat. He had played 40 minutes the night before and he just did not look like himself at all. Even when he was getting the ball he was mostly kicking it out.

Second, they were collapsing in the post over and over as Rooscooter mentioned and it proved very effective against us.

Third, whether we want to give them credit or not, the Kings have a very talented front line. I've really grown to like Jason Thompson's play - I think he's a really underrated PF. Cousins it goes without saying is a big jerk, but man he's got talent. If he could ever straighten out his attitude (I am not hopeful on that) he could be a heck of a player. He's got All Star level talent and size. He just won't achieve his potential because he's such a knucklehead.

And lastly, Chunk Hayes, yes I call him Chunk that's not a typo - is just an immovable object on defense. He's been giving our big guys problems since the Houston days. He does NOT take possessions off on D, and he makes you work for every single point. Dwight has struggled against him because the guy is so freakin' strong and thick he can't take advantage of his height over him on the block.

So yeah, our bigs (except for Hill) were totally gassed and they were playing a young and tough front line who beat them up pretty good. It happens in the NBA some nights.

In addition, they kicked our butts a couple/few times in preseason so we had already given them a lot of confidence against us.

Rooscooter · by **Rooscooter** on Fri Nov 23, 2012 1:04 pm

lkrfn85 wrote:Pau actually has been really great in this offense - off of the pick and roll, he often gets the ball in the high post, and has to read the D, and make a decision. He either lobs to Dwight, takes the midrange shot, or finds a shooter. Because of his length, bball IQ, passing ability, and midrange shot, he opens up the floor from the high post, and gets other players the ball in their spots.

That's a way to look at it I guess.... I see him doing those things except in the Pick and Roll when he's passing to a guy like Hill who is closer to the basket than Pau.... he's also being covered by a guard (who rotated to cover him) and passes to a guy that is best suited for hustling for boards. He does this 4 or 5 times a game at least. Some view it as being a "team" player or unselfish..... I think from a "good for the team" view it's better to have you 7'-1" highly skilled center looking for his shot against smaller player in pick and roll situations rather than passing to the 3 point line, throwing up a fade a way or shooting a 18 foot jumper.

To help this team we can't have one of our most skilled front court players being a "facilitator". I think he needs to get fined for every assist over 2....

He needs to be in the game without Howard as much as possible and be used as the primary option in the post... I can't count how many times Pau is at the top of the key and Hill is posting up with the second unit.... that is crazy when you have a guy that possess the skills Pau does as a post player....

Balance&Options24 · by **Balance&Options24** on Fri Nov 23, 2012 1:25 pm

Lakers question Pau Gasol's conditioning
By Mark Medina, Staff Writer
Posted: 11/22/2012 09:52:51 PM PST
Updated: 11/22/2012 09:53:03 PM PST

Following the Lakers' 113-97 loss Tuesday at Sacramento, the team sounded frank on what ailed Pau Gasol after posting only eight points on 3-of-10 shooting and one offensive rebound.

"Pau is used to laboring up the floor and coasting a little bit," Kobe Bryant said. "In this offense, we have to put the motor on the first few steps we move up the court."

That didn't happen.

Kings center DeMarcus Cousins beat Gasol on two consecutive drives in the second quarter. The Lakers forward looked frustrated after defensive breakdowns. And as coach Mike D'Antoni noted afterward, "Pau didn't have his legs" after logging 37 minutes.

Gasol took ownership of his shooting woes, but downplayed how his conditioning could fare in D'Antoni's fast-paced offense.

"I don't know if it's extremely physically demanding." Gasol said. "It's an offense that you have to move and have to be on the go and get to your spots run to your spots and find some good flow out there that we really haven't reached consistently. The offense will evolve and will be better."

borri · by **borri** on Fri Nov 23, 2012 1:49 pm

For a 7 footer, Pau gets blocked way way too much. Guess that's cuz he's afraid of contact with the rim. :man12:

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