Plain and simple, Pau Gasol does not want to be traded. The Los Angeles Lakers star has been with the team for years now and cannot imagine leaving midway through the year. While the Lakers have continued to dangle him during the trading period, no deal has been made and Gasol is hoping no deal is ever made.
The Lakers are aware that Gasol is very unlikely to re-sign with the team this upcoming offseason. With a tight salary cap space, the forward can get better offers elsewhere. While Gasol is not discussing his upcoming free agency, he is hoping to be with the team throughout the remaining months of the season.
"It fills up a lot of pages and f------ airtime," Gasol said, via ESPNLosAngeles.com. "It's something that's there and there's potential that it might happen. Who knows? We might be saying that it's been great to see you guys [in the media] and we'll see you around. But hopefully that won't be the case because it's always hard and I think if it ever happened, it would be tough."
Gasol is playing well this season in the absence of Kobe Bryant. He is averaging 17.0 points and 10.2 rebounds before suffering a groin injury that caused him to miss games before the All-Star break. Now healthy again, the forward is hoping to stay put even though he knows trades are being discussed.
"I hope not," said Gasol. "It's possible. Again, hopefully it won't happen. But it's a possibility and it's something that I always thought about, that this could be my last game here. It's been like that for a while, but as we get close to the deadline, I guess it's a little more intense."
If Gasol is getting traded, it is to the Phoenix Suns. According to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders, most NBA executives believe the Suns have the upperhand and could acquire the forward in the next 24 hours. The team has the draft picks to offer the Lakers in return. The two teams were in discussions prior to Gasol getting injured when Phoenix backed off.
The Suns could offer a first-round draft pick and Emeka Okafor for Gasol. The move would help Phoenix as they push for the playoffs in a season they were not expected to contend for much. The Lakers would get an expiring contract that is cheaper than Gasol's plus picks to build off of. This is a deal to monitor whether Gasol wants it to happen or not.
