namlook
02-08-2010, 07:58 PM
Popovich frames Gasol's impact in Los Angeles as a simple math problem.
Gasol: “He happens to be the most skilled big man on the planet,” Popovich said.
“When you add that to the best player on the planet (Bryant), that equation changed it for everybody.”
The Gasol trade also sparked a new arms race in the West. The Spurs' acquisition of Richard Jefferson and Antonio McDyess has its roots there, as did Phoenix's failed dalliance with O'Neal.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich was understandably less enthralled with the events of Feb. 1, 2008. At the time, he called what Memphis did — swapping an All-Star to the Lakers for a collection of what at the time were seen as spare parts — “beyond comprehension.”
Popovich's stance on the deal has since softened — “I was just trying to be a wise-ass,”
Memphis general manager Chris Wallace, once vilified for the deal, has since been vindicated. One of the pieces he acquired — Gasol's younger brother Marc — looks like an All-Star in the making. Another player Memphis signed with salary-cap room created by the trade — Zach Randolph — already is one.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Spurs_still_feeling_Gasol_deal.html
Gasol: “He happens to be the most skilled big man on the planet,” Popovich said.
“When you add that to the best player on the planet (Bryant), that equation changed it for everybody.”
The Gasol trade also sparked a new arms race in the West. The Spurs' acquisition of Richard Jefferson and Antonio McDyess has its roots there, as did Phoenix's failed dalliance with O'Neal.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich was understandably less enthralled with the events of Feb. 1, 2008. At the time, he called what Memphis did — swapping an All-Star to the Lakers for a collection of what at the time were seen as spare parts — “beyond comprehension.”
Popovich's stance on the deal has since softened — “I was just trying to be a wise-ass,”
Memphis general manager Chris Wallace, once vilified for the deal, has since been vindicated. One of the pieces he acquired — Gasol's younger brother Marc — looks like an All-Star in the making. Another player Memphis signed with salary-cap room created by the trade — Zach Randolph — already is one.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Spurs_still_feeling_Gasol_deal.html