Assuming ...

[So Gutta]

Let me get this straight:

Chad Ford includes Gasol on the list of players the T Wolves would be interested in, and Kupchak says a few vague things, and Pincus connects the dots for this?

His article was 100 percent speculation-- exactly what you expect from someone with absolutely ZERO "insider" connections.

Gasol for Love? Nah, I don't like it.

I'm not really sold on these top picks either...

We're not in rebuild mode yet, we're right there. Don't let last year fool you. We don't need to panic.

[TheHartBreakKid]

HAAHHAHAHA emplay

good old times

and i missed ai-in-la's wacky trades

Haha I remember the whole emplay thing vaguely, but can someone explain it in detail. From what I know he posted a false rumor regarding Boozer for Butler, but more details would be appreciated. Did he get banned?

[hermes]

^ I second that, for the simple reason of age ... Pau is aging ...

like a fine wine?

[trufan24]

im just pissed that Pau is even mentioned in trade talks....i mean here's a guy that brought us 3 western conference titles and 2 championships...one year he doesnt deliver and we consider shipping him out already...tsk tsk tsk....he's in his early 30s, that's not too old...if J Kidd could do it, theres no reason Pau cant do it again. Trading Pau is stupid in my opinion...

[BosssPlaya]

Im not too big on the Lakers breaking up the "core" we have, but if giving up 1 Pau Gasol (and maybe some 2nd round picks) and getting Kevin Love + possibly players like Martell Webster, Anthony Randolph who can fill out needs in return, I say DO IT MITCH !!

We saw in the playoffs this year that if Andrew is going to be our staring C and not come off the bench as a backup to Pau like he has, him and Pau cant communicate too well. Pau also has that habbit of letting things get to him mentaly, which gets to his game and even to this day we arent sure what was the cause of him disappearing in the Dallas series... GF issues ? health ? still a mystery.

In Kevin Love we get a player who was an All Star this year, averaging 20pts/15 boards, and hes only 22 YEARS OLD !! Hes a UCLA product and im sure he would be happy to be back at home.

Pau is great but at the age of 30/31 he only has about 2-4 years left in him, not even considering injuries at this late stage in his career. Love is 22 years old and when Pau cant go anymore, this kid is going to be one of the Top Bigs in the NBA.

They say never trade a Big for a Guard cause you cant teach length, but what about a Big for another Big who is younger and is more than capable of putting up preety much the same numbers (oo and not soft) lol ?!?

[ALL HAIL]

I can't imagine Minny dumping Love right now. I think they'd much rather dump the pick for a veteran. Anyone suggesting Minny give us Love and the number two pick is being ridiculous (Pincus included).

Please try to be objective and unbiased. Put your feet in the boots of the Lakers AND the Timberwolves:

For Laker fans, what's better?

Love and Flynn or Irving, Milicic, and Randolph ???

For Minny fans, what's better?

Gasol next to Love or Gasol next to Kanter ???

[andrewww]

the biggest problem with trading pau is that we'd be losing his low post scoring, and his overall versatility offensively when it comes to passing, etc. since we have bynum, we're in an enviable situation where we're not screwed if pau gets shipped out as bynum can also go 1 on 1 in the post and score efficiently as the focal point.

having said that, it's a delicate balance because trading pau for love, the 2nd pick, and fillers would in theory cover up a lot of our weaknesses all in one shot. we could draft for a good PG, acquire servicable back up big(s) and shooter(s), and get kevin love who would space the floor for the starters (but love isnt on pau's level when it comes to length, go to scoring, and dare i say even defense?).

[KingLakers]

Jerry Zgoda of the Minneapolis Star Tribune tweeted about an hour ago saying that the Timberwolves have interest in Pau but not at the price of Love or the the # 2 pick. So i think we can probably put this discussion to rest.

[ALL HAIL]

Minnesota, in my professional opinion, CAN"T get better through the draft this year.

With the exception of Kanter, there is no one in the top 10 they can really use.

Derrick Williams is not better than Beasley and has the same position issues. Irving and Knight are both young and ideally should not be drafted to be a backup to an already equally young and unproven Ricky Rubio.

You can stockpile all you want, but you need talent at every position, not just a couple. When you have too many young guys at the same position, you are stuntung their growth by notting giving them roles. You can't just judge talent, you have to nurture it as well.

If not Gasol for #2, who do they draft? ... I'll wait.

It behoves the Wolves to genuinely get better by bringing in a talented and proven veteran.

It doesn't have to be Gasol, but they really should look to add a legit veteran starter at C or SG.

Note: Although, to be fair,acquiring Gasol does have its drawbacks. He costs 20 mill for three more years and he would be a bad defensive fit next to Love.

[chefy]

I don't believe the rumor and if it's indeed true, I'm not sure if we're going to improve after it.


The Wolves is a rebuilding team, why the heck would they want a 30 year old powerforward and his big contract??? If you're a rebuilding team, getting the 1st/2nd/top pick is the perfect piece for your rebuilding process, the top pick would be your foundation for starting from scratch again. a cheap, young player with an all star potential.


If the Wolves is indeed doing this because of Rubio, then Khan is the worse GM in the league. The kid is a big question mark, hes no freakin Lebron James. At least wait and see Rubio play for a year before you make moves like this. If he has a franchise player potential/superstar potential, then that's when you try everything to please him and make him don't want to leave your team.


For the Lakers, its an effing huge risk. The Lakers is still a championship caliber team, we don't need risky moves like this. I also can see Kobe getting very pissed if this happens. First is for not consulting him with the Mike Brown hiring, and now trading his buddy, his right hand man in his last two championship run? Plus Bynum as our primary player in the post? for an entire year? good luck with that! If you guys think Gasol will not survive an entire season without Bynum, it is vice versa for the two the players.

[andrewww]

I don't believe the rumor and if it's indeed true, I'm not sure if we're going to improve after it.


The Wolves is a rebuilding team, why the heck would they want a 30 year old powerforward and his big contract??? If you're a rebuilding team, getting the 1st/2nd/top pick is the perfect piece for your rebuilding process, the top pick would be your foundation for starting from scratch again. a cheap, young player with an all star potential.


If the Wolves is indeed doing this because of Rubio, then Khan is the worse GM in the league. The kid is a big question mark, hes no freakin Lebron James. At least wait and see Rubio play for a year before you make moves like this. If he has a franchise player potential/superstar potential, then that's when you try everything to please him and make him don't want to leave your team.


For the Lakers, its an effing huge risk. The Lakers is still a championship caliber team, we don't need risky moves like this. I also can see Kobe getting very pissed if this happens. First is for not consulting him with the Mike Brown hiring, and now trading his buddy, his right hand man in his last two championship run? Plus Bynum as our primary player in the post? for an entire year? good luck with that! If you guys think Gasol will not survive an entire season without Bynum, it is vice versa for the two the players.

im not saying this is a move we should or have to make, but you have to always look to get better or the competition catches up. dr. buss' mantra with the lakers has always been to make smart gambles on talent, and that has paid off for the most part.

stockpiling draft picks hasnt necessarily been a guarantee for success, look at the clippers when they had brand/odom/miles/qrich/olowokandi/dre miller. you may sometimes get hidden agendas, young players looking to get paid ahead of team success. then there is the stunting of a young player's growth with no defined role or playing time. it's a fine line.

imo from minny's perspective, this year's draft will not help them. the projected top 3-4 picks (d.williams/irving/knight/kanter) are all redundant with the players they already have. and from what ive been hearing, there's a legit possibility that cleveland will draft derrick williams 1st overall. in that case, the next best players are generally accepted as kylie irving then brandon knight, both PGs. you already have rubio. logjam much? they can try to follow boston's blueprint with the KG trade, but it usually only works if you have young talent that's shown potential ala al jefferson. we'll see what happens.

[chefy]

he question is do we improve after this trade?

everything has to be perfect, for us to call this trade an "improvement"

What is the Lakers goal? It is to win a championship again next season right? Therefore D.Williams has to play at an allstar level and replace of Pau's production. Anything short of that is not an improvement. What are the chances of a 20 year old rookie playing at an allstar level in his first year? Basing it in the NBA's history, 2 out of 10 the last ten years, it was Yao and guess who's the other player? our very own Pau. Like I said this is too much of a risk for us to take.

[andrewww]

he question is do we improve after this trade?

everything has to be perfect, for us to call this trade an "improvement"

What is the Lakers goal? It is to win a championship again next season right? Therefore D.Williams has to play at an allstar level and replace of Pau's production. Anything short of that is not an improvement. What are the chances of a 20 year old rookie playing at an allstar level in his first year? Basing it in the NBA's history, 2 out of 10 the last ten years, it was Yao and guess who's the other player? our very own Pau. Like I said this is too much of a risk for us to take.

we'd be drafting a PG in either irving or knight should we actually be able to make this pipedream of a deal for love and the 2nd overall pick and fillers.

[The_Trade_Seer]

im just pissed that Pau is even mentioned in trade talks....

Get used to it ...

i mean here's a guy that brought us 3 western conference titles and 2 championships...

Um, I would credit Kobe with those before Pau.

one year he doesnt deliver and we consider shipping him out already...tsk tsk tsk....

Don't get me wrong, I love Pau and love his game, however if we can improve the team by trading him, you just have to have the guts to pull the trigger. Trading Pau straight up for Kevin Love is a no-brainer, let alone if we could get the #2 or Flynn, etc.

he's in his early 30s, that's not too old...

That is ANCIENT by big man standards. Big men are not PG'S, they rapidly decline.

if J Kidd could do it, theres no reason Pau cant do it again.

Are you kidding me? One plays the point and almost never bangs, never even gets fouled, the other is a 7 footer getting beat to snot every game ... the two are night and day dude.

Trading Pau is stupid in my opinion...

So if the Magic offered Dwight straight up for Pau, you'd say no? Don't be silly, and don't think for a second that K-Love isn't the real deal with a whole lot more value around the L than Gasol.

[ALL HAIL]

But if Love is OFF THE TABLE and the #2 Pick is on it, is it worth it?

Gasol for Irving, Milicic, and Randolph.

Minnesota and noone ewould be willing to take on Gasol's contract and give up the #2 pick and Kevin "Effin" Love. Ya'll are greedy as hell.

If me and Kahn are thinking the same, the only real deal they might be interested in is a deal using the #2 pick to get talent and veteran leadership. They also know that Love could very easily walk when his time comes.

The number 2 pick is Minny's best bet to getting dramatically better and balanced.

The more I think about it, if I were Minny I would probably only do it as a marketing novelty.

A team of Rubio, Gasol, and Love will make the playoffs (if they surround them properly) but they won't be winning a ring anytime soon unless Love and Gasol commit themselves to defense.

From a pure basketball standpoint, I don't like the idea of adding Gasol to Love because of their weak defense, but from a business/buzz standpoint, it's a great idea for Minny.

Pau is just too expensive for my taste. So unless I felt the presence of Gasol would make me significantly more money than what it takes to pay him, I wouldn't do it from Minny's perspective.

The Lakers would be "gutless" if they passed on the opportunity to acquire the best PG on the draft (Irving) and a two potentially very good back bigs (Milicic and Randolph) for Gasol who is easily replaceable with our current roster.

[Anklebreaker702]

Good read guys but honestly I haven't seen enough of those young guys to give a fair answer

[The_Trade_Seer]

But if Love is OFF THE TABLE and the #2 Pick is on it, is it worth it? Gasol for Irving, Milicic, and Randolph.

Yes, it's worth it and I would do that deal, mostly because I believe if the #2 is Irving, that Irving and filler could get us CP3, and if the #2 is Derrick Williams that Williams and Bynum could land us D12.

Minnesota and noone ewould be willing to take on Gasol's contract and give up the #2 pick and Kevin "Effin" Love. Ya'll are greedy as hell.

I agree with you.

If me and Kahn are thinking the same,

Oh no, don't say such a thing! Are you trying to hurt yourself? To scare others? Thinking like David Kahn is a very, very scary thing.

the only real deal they might be interested in is a deal using the #2 pick to get talent and veteran leadership. They also know that Love could very easily walk when his time comes. The number 2 pick is Minny's best bet to getting dramatically better and balanced.

I agree.

The more I think about it, if I were Minny I would probably only do it as a marketing novelty. A team of Rubio, Gasol, and Love will make the playoffs (if they surround them properly) but they won't be winning a ring anytime soon unless Love and Gasol commit themselves to defense. From a pure basketball standpoint, I don't like the idea of adding Gasol to Love because of their weak defense, but from a business/buzz standpoint, it's a great idea for Minny.

There is a better chance of a woman playing in the NBA than there is of the Wolves winning a title ... I don't think that is even part of the gameplan in frozen Sota.

The Lakers would be "gutless" if they passed on the opportunity to acquire the best PG on the draft (Irving) and a two potentially very good back bigs (Milicic and Randolph) for Gasol who is easily replaceable with our current roster.

I agree 100%

[fongie24]

I think Love would be a great fit on this team. He has more range than Gasol so that would give Bynum and kobe more opportunities in the post. He might not have the offensive repertoire that Gasol has but he is no scrub. I'd seriously consider a Love + filler for Gasol.

[ALL HAIL]

It's smart to try to think a couple of steps ahead AI.

But if there was no moving of Irving (if he were acquired), is it worth it for LA if the deal is simply Gasol for Irving and two backup bigs (Milicic and Randolph) ... with the potential for an even bigger star later but knowing full well YOU'LL PROBABLY be looking at Irving in a Laker jersey for the duaration???

Assuming Irving were on the board, you were not previed to a private workout, and Irving was not traded a year later for CP3 (we're stuck with him), would you dump Gasol for Irving and some bigman depth??? That's all I'm asking.

[tugs]

this thread made my day.i love these very intelligent posts.

All of these arguments make sense but still,no clear answer on what is more logical.

I get you AI-in-LA, comparing a point and a big man is night and day. But have you considered how much of a quality big Pau is? Durability wise,he is at par with Duncan imo. If there is doubt whether pau can help for another championship run,then that is stupid. We know pau is capable of bouncing back from mediocre performances.

I'm taking back what I said earlier,if this deal doesn't land us a legit superstar,and I'm talking about CP3,then risking LA's core is not worth it.