1-800-SAVE-PAU

[LA_Sports]

I understand how people are disappointed in Pau's play and there probably are better PF options for this team. However there are extremely limited options for the Lakers right now. Trading Pau is fine but let's be realistic, it will be for garbage at this point because his contract is too big. No one can think of real deal that works to benefit the team right now. They might just be better to hold on to him and let it play itself out on the hope he improves with the team. I would rather them do that for a year instead of committing to crappy player contracts for the long hall.

[EArl]

I dont care if Pau gets traded anymore.

[One Love]

I think Pau will get amnestied at the end of the season and another team will pick him up for $7 to $8 million therefore the Lakers pay $12 to $13 million of his salary (he costs us close $40 million with luxury taxes)... The Lakers don't want Bargs contract (3 years) & Minnesota doesn't have enough pieces... Pau will play more bachup 5 & less with the starters... Our problem is we are OLD & simply don't get the lose balls, put backs, trannsition & hustle points... Hill & Meeks are our only hustle players... DAntonis system makes it worse where the triangle could hide some of our shortcomings... I HATE watching us play right now... Frustrating...

[semi-sentient]

I think Pau is a complete defensive liability at this point. Just too immobile. And the moment last night where a play got whistled dead and Pau went up for a no-count, uncontested dunk and got stuffed by the rim.... That showed a lot.

lol... that was hilarious. Didn't that happen right after he got stuffed by Hawes?

As Laker fans it seems like we have all (obviously not literally all, but largely) gotten into this mindset that you just trade your problems away, or just trade to get what you need, and I just don't think that's always the case. At this point, I really believe that a big move like trading Pau would be too much shake up for a team that has already been through so much this year. You need continuity, we saw that with the Heat, we see it every year with the Spurs, etc. At some point you have to roll with what you got. I'd love to see Pau's minutes get cut significantly, probably even bring him in off the bench, but I think from here on out, our team should be our team. Just face it, this team isn't very good and a lot needs to change for them to be good (resisting the urge to vent about Kobe...), but we as fans need to be patient and encouraging this year and hope that they figure out a way to get things done, as a team.

Agree with everything you said here. We're not going to get good value for Pau, but he can still help us off the bench as he gets the bulk of his minutes at the 5. I've actually been promoting this idea since the beginning of the season and D'Antoni made a brief mention of it a few weeks ago.

[semi-sentient]

Our problem is we are OLD & simply don't get the lose balls, put backs, trannsition & hustle points... Hill & Meeks are our only hustle players...

Ebanks and Morris are also hustle players. Unfortunately we don't seem all that interested in giving Ebanks any PT and instead are looking to run Kobe into the ground by playing him excessively.

We want Showtime back right? Well if that's the case then we need more athleticism in the starting lineup which means getting Pau the hell out of there and starting either Hill or Ebanks along with Metta. Metta isn't the most athletic, but he provides some decent spacing and solid defense, and Nash is a master at getting guys wide open mid-range shots. Hill and Ebanks by themselves aren't very competent offensive players but Nash tends to make the game a lot easier for guys so I feel it could work. Defensively it's a no-brainer.

[LApwnd]

he can start, I bet SA could revive his career. But yes he needs to get traded, this O doesn't fit him, in fact probably doesn't even fit Howard much as of right now but its surely hindering Pau game. I dont think he can back down his opponents anymore but he still has alot of post moves to get him where he needs to go if he had more opportunities in the paint.

[EArl]

Lets not get carried away.

[Michael Lucky]

it's obvious what the issue is. He has a Per of 28 playing the C this year and a Per of 13 playing PF. He needs to be a C. He's uncomfortable around the perimeter on offense and he's uncomfortable playing D on the perimeter since he's so afraid his man will run right past him which is why you see his lazy attempt to come out on people's shots.

[dockingsched]

it's obvious what the issue is. He has a Per of 28 playing the C this year and a Per of 13 playing PF. He needs to be a C. He's uncomfortable around the perimeter on offense and he's uncomfortable playing D on the perimeter since he's so afraid his man will run right past him which is why you see his lazy attempt to come out on people's shots.

pau at pf: 39% efg

pau at c: 65% efg

its like night and day, someone out there has to be interesting in playing pau at center and willing to trade some value for him if it comes down to that.

[Slava]

There's a small issue of protecting the basket if he plays at center, which he has sucked at pretty badly not to mention having to step out on pick n rolls where the opposing team will make a conscious effort to switch him onto the smaller guy. Its hard to cover him on defense, bad defense at the center position will get shown up very easily.

[Gek]

I think it still comes down to Pau not wanting to come off the bench. He needs to understand its not him as much as it is that we have a better center.

[Michael Lucky]

you don't waste a talent like Pau's playing 13mpg just to play backup C, plain and simple. If you're going to do that, you better trade him.

[AcecardZ]

Pau's problem has far less to do with playing out of position than it does the fact he has zero athleticism. He doesn't need to be the best PF in the league for us to kill everybody. He just needs to not suck and he sucks because he can't run, jump, defend, shoot, rebound or do anything else that a power forward has to be able to do to be successful in this league.

If Pau were moved to starting center and played many minutes against opposing team's starting centers he'd get exposed there also. Again his problems have almost nothing to do with him being out of position and everything to do with the fact he has zero athleticism left in him at this point. Whether it's due to him playing in the Olympics or due to something else it doesn't matter and unless something is done soon about it our season is toast if it's not toast already.

[Michael Lucky]

When all he does is shoot 20 footers in a system that forces him to do so, i don't understand how anyone can say this doesn't have to do with the position he plays. It has everything to do with it. A player doesn't go from 18/11 playing C, to this mediocrity just like that in a span of a few months. The olympic team even benched Marc so he could play C during the summer because he was that much more efficient and they limited the time they were together on the floor instead opting to combine the Gasol brothers with Ibaka for most of the time.

We've turned the most skilled low post big man in the game into a perimeter playmaker/shooter. It's absurd.

[Run-MKE 311]

Pau is a combination right now of a player who has zero confidence and is being hindered by a system which does not fit him.

Sure his attitude stinks, but more and more I believe he cannot succeed in this system. It really is just amazing how far he has fallen in only a few seasons.

[Run-MKE 311]

Pau is a combination right now of a player who has zero confidence and is being hindered by a system which does not fit him.

Sure his attitude stinks, but more and more I believe he cannot succeed in this system. It really is just amazing how far he has fallen in only a few seasons.

[semi-sentient]

you don't waste a talent like Pau's playing 13mpg just to play backup C, plain and simple. If you're going to do that, you better trade him.

He would obviously get some minutes at the 4 as well, but the important thing is that he comes into the game with fresh legs at the 5. He'd get a breather midway through the 2nd/4th and finish out the game as we wouldn't want to run the offense through Howard anyway.

[AcecardZ]

When all he does is shoot 20 footers in a system that forces him to do so, i don't understand how anyone can say this doesn't have to do with the position he plays. It has everything to do with it. A player doesn't go from 18/11 playing C, to this mediocrity just like that in a span of a few months. The olympic team even benched Marc so he could play C during the summer because he was that much more efficient and they limited the time they were together on the floor instead opting to combine the Gasol brothers with Ibaka for most of the time.

We've turned the most skilled low post big man in the game into a perimeter playmaker/shooter. It's absurd.

This post completely ignores how pathetic Pau has looked with the ball 1-5 feet from the rim, how pathetic Pau has looked rebounding and how pathetic Pau has looked defending. He's a mess all around. If e was only struggling to make 18 footers I'd agree with your post but he's struggling in absolutely every aspect of the game.

[semi-sentient]

Indeed.

Gasol is 12-52 (23%) in the paint this season (outside of the restricted area). Last season he was 97-209 (46%).

He's 42-111 (38%) from mid-range, whereas last season he was 157-370 (42%).

His percentages have even dipped inside the RA as he shot 64% last year and only 60% this season. How bad is that? Kobe shoots 66%, Howard 64%, Hill 64%, and Jamison (!) 62%. The only one who is worse is Metta (53%) and that's because he tends to blow layups in transition and/or throws up a lot of corny off-balance shots.

What's sad is that offense hasn't even been the worst part about Pau's game -- it's his defense that hurts us most. The difference between him and Hill or Metta is monstrous and until we make that change as well as Howard getting back to his old self we're going to continue sucking on defense.

[AcecardZ]

What's sad is that offense hasn't even been the worst part about Pau's game -- it's his defense that hurts us most. The difference between him and Hill or Metta is monstrous and until we make that change as well as Howard getting back to his old self we're going to continue sucking on defense.

QFT!