Thunder vs. Lakers: Early Exit from Playoffs Spells End for Pau Gasol in L.A.
The writing's on the wall for Pau Gasol, and has been for some time.
And if the Los Angeles Lakers bow out to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals, he may well be the first shoe to drop.
Whether he truly deserves it or not.
All eyes were on Pau after Game 4, in which his middling statistical performance (10 points, five rebounds, two assists and three blocks) was overshadowed only by the key play he didn't make:
An open 14-foot jumper that he passed up, and a pass, intended for Metta World Peace, that was picked up by Kevin Durant and ultimately converted into a back-breaking three points on the other end.
Forget that the Lakers had a 13-point lead with just under eight minutes to play. Forget that Kobe Bryant went stone-cold down the stretch as the Thunder narrowed that gap.
This was all Pau's fault...right?
After all, he's been a scapegoat for the Lakers' shortcomings ever since he arrived in what, at the time, appeared to be highway robbery of the Memphis Grizzlies.
Not so much, now that Marc Gasol, the supposed throw-in in that deal, has grown into an All-Star.
In any case, Pau came in and immediately turned the Lakers into a championship contender, slipping perfectly into Phil Jackson's Triangle offense as LA made three straight trips to the NBA Finals.
Then the 2011 playoffs happened, and the Dallas Mavericks happened, and the Zen Master was gone and the organization had its own mandate for change.
And Pau's double-doubles didn't matter as much anymore, not with Mike Brown hoping to feature Kobe and Andrew Bynum in the post and relegating Gasol to a supplemental role as a result. As Pau told Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com after Game 4 on Saturday:
""I'd love to be the guy, I'd love to be aggressive as far as scoring. That's what I've done all my career and I've helped this team win two championships doing that. But obviously it's a different scenario right now. I try to get more involved, but it seems like all my involvement is through offensive rebounding and a couple jumper opportunities."
"
He would've been the guy, too, if it hadn't been for that meddling commissioner. He was supposed to be on his way to the Houston Rockets as part of the blockbuster deal that would've landed Chris Paul in Purple and Gold and revitalized the Lakers as title contenders for years to come.
Instead, David Stern invoked his powers as steward of the New Orleans Hornets to nix the deal. That left the Lakers in the awkward position of having to trade Lamar Odom to the Dallas Mavericks for peanuts, soothe Gasol's concerns without limiting their future trade options and reshuffle their master plan for maximizing the Black Mamba's waning years.
All of which left Gasol on the outside looking in, as far as his role on and security with the team were concerned. He was given no assurances leading up to the trade deadline and played through distractions of all sorts, effective at times and not so much at others.
And so, Pau will step onto the court at Chesapeake Energy Arena on Monday night for what may be his final game in a Lakers uniform, depending on the outcome. If they lose, and Gasol puts forth another subpar performance, he'll be blamed for being too soft, too old (nearing his 32nd birthday) and too ineffective rather than praised for being unselfish and supremely skilled for a player his size.
Because times have changed in Lakerland. The Triangle is no longer the paradigm for the Purple and Gold, meaning Pau Gasol is no longer the integral cog that he once was.
Now, he's little more than a misfit part who's said to clog the lane for Bynum and who might benefit the Lakers more as a trade chip, to attract multiple pieces to fill in holes on the roster, than as a player.
Assuming, of course, that Jim Buss and GM Mitch Kupchak can find a deal to their liking.
Surely, leaving LA wouldn't be to Gasol's liking, though if it means less time under the bus and more time at the rim, then it might just be what's best for everyone.
