RealGM

What is his game acutally and is Phil using him to his strength and potential? I say this because yesterday he

A) tried to drive against Dirk, looked foolish and missed layups

B) Tried to back Dirk down and instead a PF in Dirk "FREAKING Shaggy DOO" was a brick wall and wouldnt move and the result was a blocked shot.



SO WTF is Gasol's game? Does he post up? Shoot straight up?

Right now it seems that he gets most his points off screens from Kobe or Lamar or put back points from grabbing boards. In the playoffs this will be difficult to do and without help down low these teams in the west can shut him out.

actually, dirk is simply a whole lot bulkier, and physically stronger than gasol.
gasols game consists of slashing, pick n rolls, offensive boards, baby hooks, and midrange jumpers.
his game is actually pretty polished. dirk is just flat out better. pau is very good himself, just a tier below dirk

gasol can take it to anyone...whether it be dirk, kg, duncan, bosh, amare, or whatever...he has mroe than enough offensive skills to do his thing.

One game isn't a fair judge for anyone, let alone a proven performer like Pau.

About the only thing I don't like about him is that he clearly doesn't like physical contact. Other than that, his offensive game is very well described above, with the addition that he's also an excellent passer.

Gasol had 17/14/5 with 2 blks and 3 stls and did his part to help this team win.

Dirk is one of the best all around players in the game.

I think Gasol is getting a little tired... It's been a while since he's maintained this intensity over this long a stretch...

LA is a lot different than Memphis, Kobe's more intense than just about anybody, and trying to maintain a streak in the West right now is a herculean task...

Next time we play a weaker team I bet Pau gets some bench time.

good question. we know hes got good touch and ability in the pick and roll department. good passer. quality hook shots. but an ability which hasnt been seen much, is the midrange. i dont believe we have seen it that much, but i think he is an excellent midrange shooter.

the scenario i forsee that we could use, is a hi/low with bynum. those 2 7 footers will absolutely smash teams. give bynum those short putbacks. those little alleyoops. and run it with a good passer like gasol. play off him and i trust his midrange moreso than bynum and lamar(of course), and he will can that shot.

KobeFan wrote:Gasol had 17/14/5 with 2 blks and 3 stls and did his part to help this team win.

I'd say thats excellent , specially how Lamar couldnt guard Dirk for ish , and he did shut him down on tha last 2 plays in O.T ....
Wouldnt you ?

The only problem I see is Gasol going up against the bigger, bulkier C's.

Dampier
Kurt Thomas
Duncan
Okur
Pryzbilla

All these guys can hold their position and maintain control of the boards.

Having Bynum alleviates a lot of those issues. Bynum is so long that I don't see the Lakers losing the rebound battle again. I also agree with the idea that when Bynum gets back that Pau will set up Bynum for lil alley oops and putbacks and vice versa.........

G35 wrote:The only problem I see is Gasol going up against the bigger, bulkier C's.

Dampier
Kurt Thomas
Duncan
Okur
Pryzbilla

All these guys can hold their position and maintain control of the boards.

Having Bynum alleviates a lot of those issues. Bynum is so long that I don't see the Lakers losing the rebound battle again. I also agree with the idea that when Bynum gets back that Pau will set up Bynum for lil alley oops and putbacks and vice versa.........

Pau isnt a true center .
His a C/F , the only player that you can compare Pau to on your list is Duncan .

Sedale Threatt wrote:One game isn't a fair judge for anyone, let alone a proven performer like Pau.

About the only thing I don't like about him is that he clearly doesn't like physical contact. Other than that, his offensive game is very well described above, with the addition that he's also an excellent passer.

Thats what I noticed as well. Not just yesterday but also against Portland, phoenix and Orlando when Howard was in the game.

Im not knocking Pau in anyway because its still 100x better than Kwame, but it seems he has a tough time backing Centers down then like yesterday he will drive and drive the basket and you can tell that isnt his game.

The other poster made a point that he is looking a little tired. Hopefully the Lakers can remedy this somehow so he doesnt go and get injured

TonyMontana wrote:-= original quote snipped =-


I'd say thats excellent , specially how Lamar couldnt guard Dirk for ish , and he did shut him down on tha last 2 plays in O.T ....
Wouldnt you ?

we watching the same game here?

He's making a jab at me because of the big Odom debates I've had with other posters here.

i cant wait till bynum comes back, and i know pau cant wait also...pau is taking a beating down there..lol..but dude still makes up for it on the offensive end.

just keep playing the way hes playing when bynum comes back and we will be fine

you guys the fact that he cant back down centers proves one thing, he isnt a center. He is a power forward. Right now my only worry is that we dont have a true center right now except for Mbenga (which isnt saying much). We could really use Mihm right now.

When we play teams with true centers we tend to see a lot less out of Pau.

Gerald3Wallace wrote:-= original quote snipped =-
we watching the same game here?

I was thinking the same thing. Considering Diggler is one of the toughest matchups in the league, I thought Lamar defended him about as well as possible. His semi-gaffe at the end of regulation notwithstanding, I was impressed with his overall performance.

forcing dirk into some of the tough shots he was making was very good defense from lamar. i think people around here tend to forget that other teams have superstars too. dirk was 10 for 26!

But what were you expecting when we signed Gasol that he would stop Dirk, Duncan, Amare...?
Really? Who in the whole league can stop them? And you expect that from a guy that is mainly an offensive player? If you find me a guy who can score 20 ppg with 60% on shooting and stop the best big men in the league please tell me.

Gasol struggling against a stronger player isn't anything new. It happened in Memphis as well.

Jackson and his staff need to figure out how to make adjustments when they're faced with that situation.

Looking at the teams that the Lakers will face in the playoffs, they better come up with adjustments fast.

If he can make the open layups and contest shots alone, that makes him significantly better than Kwame, thus, just eliminated and big weakness the Lakers had that teams enjoyed taking advantage of.

crackjack wrote:Gasol struggling against a stronger player isn't anything new. It happened in Memphis as well.

Jackson and his staff need to figure out how to make adjustments when they're faced with that situation.

Looking at the teams that the Lakers will face in the playoffs, they better come up with adjustments fast.

Adjustments? You mean waiting for Bynum to come back? Sure Mbenga is our only true center, but I'd still rather have Pau or Ronnie in when the Lakers haven't put the game away yet.