NBA Trade Rumors: Why the Lakers Would Trade Pau Gasol

If the Lakers want to advance to the finals, Pau Gasol should be shown the door.

It's strange that a team would be looking to deal away a four-time All-Star and two-time NBA Champion, but that's the current state of the Lakers at this point. 

Gasol is still a fantastic player. His overall skill level for a man his size is very impressive and his combination of length and intelligence makes him incredibly unique.

However, there are some reasons why the Lakers would conceivably trade the Spaniard.

As mentioned above, Gasol is the biggest trade chip the Lakers have. Seven-footers don't grow on trees, especially ones that have Gasol's ability. 

If the Lakers were to trade Gasol, they'd be entitled to a massive haul in return.

A recent report indicates that a possible Gasol for Kyle Lowry and Luis Scola deal could work for both the Lakers and Rockets.

In the process, both Houston and Los Angeles would fulfill big time needs.

For the Lakers, they'd fill the point guard position with a budding star in Lowry. The position has been a cavernous hole for Los Angeles this season. For as respected as Derek Fisher is, he simply cannot sustain major minutes.

He's wildly inconsistent in regards to his shooting from the perimeter and he's taking on the role of a glorified parking cone defensively.

In no way do I mean any disrespect to Fisher, but he simply isn't the answer if the Lakers are to advance to a possible finals berth.

Lowry would not only provide youth to an aging squad, but he'd give the Lakers a player who could penetrate the lane and create for himself. No one on the roster outside of Kobe Bryant can do that.

The unselfish Scola would complement Andrew Bynum well. He'd be a hard-working banger down in the post and would provide a perimeter threat from 15-18 feet.

Gasol, on the other hand, would give Houston the superstar that they don't currently have. The Rockets' roster is full of very solid players, but they need that special player to help them advance in the playoffs. 

A potential tandem of Gasol and Kevin Martin would work extremely well together. In addition, Houston has both Goran Dragic and Jonny Flynn, so point guard depth wouldn't be an issue.

Truly, there's no secret that the Lakers need point guard help. Whether it's Lowry or Rajon Rondo, Gasol is the player that will help them get a big time floor leader.

Other qualms regarding Gasol include his massive contract in the upcoming years and his age.

At 31, Gasol will not be a free agent until the 2013/14 season. In the next three seasons (including this one), he's making a whopping $57 million dollars.  

The Lakers would love to unload his huge contract and free up some much needed cap space for prospective free agents. In addition, a steady decline could be imminent.

This season, Gasol is scoring two points less than last year and his field goal percentage currently is .503, down from the .529 he shot last season.

Those numbers should only continue to diminish, especially since Gasol isn't in the prime of his career anymore.

I don't believe Gasol should unequivocally be traded. I'm not even certain that the Lakers would be better without the power forward. 

However, there are reasons that demonstrate a possible rationale behind trading the Spaniard.