NBA Trade Rumors: Lakers Must Accept Rockets' Blockbuster Offer for Pau Gasol

Jim Buss can’t choke.

The Los Angeles Lakers will not, cannot win an NBA championship this season with their current roster.  Rumors have it though, that the bait they’ve placed has been approached by a 10-point buck and Buss can’t freeze — he must pull the trigger.

ESPN’s Chris Broussard reported that the Houston Rockets are offering Kevin Martin, Luis Scola, Goran Dragic and potentially a first-round pick for Pau Gasol.

A skeptical fan’s reaction to this trade is that the Lakers are giving up three quarters for a dollar, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. 

Gasol isn’t the best power forward in the world that analysts were labeling him after he aided LA in  winning back-to-back titles.  The Spaniard is averaging just 16.7 points per game this season compared to 15.2 from Scola.  Believe it or not, there wouldn't be a drastic offensive drop-off at the 4-spot.

Though Scola’s rebounding numbers pale in comparison to Gasol's, they can afford to take a dip on the boards to sure up their catastrophic weaknesses.

Whether he would come off the bench or start, the upgrade Gragic would provide at the point guard position cannot be understated.  The 25-year-old shredded the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals back in 2010 with penetrating ability LA fans haven’t seen from a floor general in over a decade.  His defensive ability is also superior to Derek Fisher’s, and while he isn’t a playmaker, neither is anyone else in the Lakers’ current rotation.

The addition of Martin would single-handedly transform the Lakers' bench from being one of the worst in the league to one of the best.  Last season, he averaged more points per 40 minutes than everyone in the league besides Kobe Bryant himself.  Now backing up Bryant, Martin would play a Jason Terry-like role as instant offense off the bench.

Right now, Los Angeles boasts one of the best trios in the league, but they aren’t talented enough as a team to win it all.  If Buss accepts the Rockets’ generous offer, Team Hollywood would finally possess enough backstage talent to allow their stars to shine.

David Daniels is a featured columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer.

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