Pau Gasol has always been a player you could picture working within the system the San Antonio Spurs operate under. Moving the basketball and finding the best shot possible, something that as a 15-year old veteran Center, Gasol knows a lot about. As one of the NBA’s best passing big men gets added to a contender’s roster, it’s bound to help their cause.
Although Gasol signed a 2-year, $30 million deal with the Spurs, he has been offered multiple times throughout his career to join, Gregg Popovich and the Spurs, and now with Tim Duncan out of the equation, Gasol believes it was the right time for him to join San Antonio. Per Eurohoops, Gasol said no to the Spurs two years ago, and now he’s back:
“Two years ago I declined the option of going to the Spurs. Now it was the right time to go to San Antonio”, explained the Spaniard: “Popovich has he told me that I will contribute a lot and along with LaMarcus Aldridge, without Tim Duncan any more, I will be one of the leaders of the team in the front line”.
For many years the idea of Gasol playing the final seasons of his career in Spain was a popular rumor in Europe, but now this is not happening: “While still playing in the NBA, my chances of returning to FC Barcelona are reduced. It’s a nice idea, but becoming less and less possible. My hope of playing for the national team remains the same, evaluating it year by year and analyzing how my body adapts to the workload.”
Gasol and Aldridge will be a difficult matchup for most teams in the front-court, with their ability to stretch the floor as well as pass the ball, the Spurs could be a well oiled machine next year, as usual. The Spurs lost a huge leader and locker room presence in Tim Duncan, but with a cast full of veteran players, it should be a smooth transition for Gasol and his new team.
