Lakers Trade Rumors: Why L.A. Shouldn't Trade Pau Gasol for Andre Iguodala

The Los Angeles Lakers must avoid the temptation and keep Pau Gasol, even if the reports of the Philadelphia 76ers offering Andre Iguodala are true. 

And according to Philly.com's John Mitchell, those rumors have at least surfaced.

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Just like last offseason, forward Andre Iguodala is connected to more trade rumors than any of his teammates. The 28-year-old forward has been mentioned in a possible deal involving the Los Angeles Lakers and center/forward Pau Gasol, something the Sixers front office will neither confirm nor deny.

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Now, let me get this straight. If we're starting from scratch and doing some sort of draft, I'm absolutely taking Iggy before I take Pau. 

He's three years younger, he defends the perimeter just as well, if not better than anyone not named LeBron and he's a triple-double threat every time he walks on the court.

Gasol is just as unique at the power forward position, but his decrease in shooting percentage this year and poor playoff performance are a little concerning. Not huge faults by any means, this is still a 17-10 guy with good defense at the rim, but I'm still rating Iggy just a little higher. 

But that doesn't mean I'm going to trade straight up. When deciding to make a trade, comparing the talent involved is only one of many factors.

The rest of your roster, cap space and money issues, championship aspirations, etc. all go into making the decision. 

While bringing in a small forward like Iguodala is certainly intriguing, people forget how effective Metta World Peace was to end the season. 

In 13 games in April, the Queensbridge native upped his shooting percentage to 47 percent to go along with 14.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game. 

Combine that encouraging play with his always solid defense, and World Peace isn't a bad option at small forward moving into the future.

Is Iguodala an upgrade at small forward? Absolutely. Enough of an upgrade to offset the loss at power forward? No way. 

Unless the Lakers want to roll with Josh McRoberts or Jordan Hill (who actually was solid down the stretch), they would have to sign another big man to replace Gasol.

That's what makes this trade the wrong move for L.A. Trading Gasol for a slightly cheaper Iguodala wouldn't open up enough cap space to sign a high-impact big man, and contrary to popular belief, it's highly unlikely they would be able to sign Kevin Garnett or any other big man worth his salt with the mid-level exception. 

So while Iguodala is an enticing option, especially for the now unpopular Gasol, the Lakers must remember a World Peace-Gasol combination is better than an Iguodala-whoever-they-are-able-to-sign combination. 

It all depends on who the Lakers would be able to attract once free agency starts, sure, but at this point, it doesn't look like the right move. 

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