Pau Gasol's words of wisdom for Bynum

KB24 wrote:Pau is dead on. But it also shows why Pau didn't love being the number 1 guy on Memphis.

As Mark Jackson used to say: great players believe.

Jerry West once said that the word superstar [great] is freely used nowadays but intimated that it should be reserved for a select few like Russell, Chamberlain, Abdul-Jabbar, Johnson, Bird, Jordan, Bryant et all.

Gasol is an excellent all around player, highly respected by his peers and deserves the success he achieved BUT for Jackson speaking in generalities placing him in rarefied company is a disservice.

What Pau said to Drew was 100% right and on-point!

Take a look at last year, as great a year as it was for Bynum, one of his glaring problems was his inability to deal with double-team; in addition, last year was the first fully-healthy season he's ever had, despite few responsibilities in his years prior;

It's nice to see Pau still cares enough about Drew to give him sound advice/warnings for his upcoming season as a franchise player. AND SAVE YOUR HIGH SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGY CLASS on how this shows Pau's unwillingness to be the leader of a team. He said nothing of the sort in the interview. Your bias is reeking.

LTLakerFan wrote:I wonder if the bone bruise thing he keeps getting is caused sometimes by the metal portion of the brace he wears?

But yeah....Gasol is exactly right....be careful what you wish for. Personally I don't think Drew has the strength and explosiveness and quickness to handle the increased pounding and double & triple teams he will now face down low as the MAN every game. Hope he can hold up to it but have my doubts.

Pau can PLAY...look what he did to TEAM USA in the Olympic finals...this dude can BALL...he just needs the MOTIVATION!!! I am not sure the Laker coaches have what it takes...PJ didn't have it either...after the chips...Pau needs to find his motivation...the Lakers are NOT the SPANISH team...does he have the MOTIVATION to bring it for a non SPANISH team?

I dont think Bynum wanting to me the man is accurate. He had two chances at being that and he didnt take advantage of it.

OX1947 wrote:I dont think Bynum wanting to me the man is accurate. He had two chances at being that and he didnt take advantage of it.

What are you talking about? He was NEVER the man in L.A. He was the 4th option at best during our championship runs. Last year he was #2 and had his best season as a pro.

Texas Lakers Fan wrote:

OX1947 wrote:I dont think Bynum wanting to me the man is accurate. He had two chances at being that and he didnt take advantage of it.

What are you talking about? He was NEVER the man in L.A. He was the 4th option at best during our championship runs. Last year he was #2 and had his best season as a pro.

You just said exactly what I said and added "What are you talking about?" before it. Maybe you can tell me I do not have an avatar too.

Let me just put it this way...if Bynum was the #1 option for any length of time...on a team without a Kobe or another support big like Pau or Lamar, I'd be very, very nervous.

Drew brings a lot of talent to the table, but he brings with it his immaturity and an injury history that is still a formidable worry.

Drew may want to be the man...but he has yet to show me that he can truly rise to the occasion. His playoff performance said all that needed to be said, and in the end, made him shipping his arse out for Dwight a total no brainer.

It's easy to say now looking back that he's not worth the money he's getting paid. But when we acquired him we went to the Finals. The next two seasons we won Championships. The money he was given at the time was sound because he was our 2nd option and he was doing a great job at it. No one could have predicted him declining the playoffs this much the last two years, whatever those reasons may be.

As for him being shipped out, I don't buy it. Kobe has vouched for him and he fits in well with this team. Is he overpayed? Oh absolutely. He's no longer our 2nd option he's likely our 3rd or 4th and he deserves to get paid as such (from us anyway, elsewhere he'd make far more). If this was an entirely business decision, he'd have been gone last year (hello Chris Paul), but with the voucher from our leader and number one money provider, he's sticking around. I expect after his contract expires and Kobe probably retires, Pau will be offered a chance to test his market value or come back at a vastly reduced price.

But until then he's not going anywhere. Don't expect a mid-season trade or for him to be gone this upcoming summer unless he does something to betray Kobe's trust: chokes in 3 straight Playoff runs.