Like most fans, former Los Angeles Lakers star Pau Gasol was surprised when he found out that his former team acquired a star like Luka Doncic. Days before the trade deadline, the Lakers and Dallas Mavericks shook the sports world with a blockbuster deal that featured Doncic and star big man Anthony Davis exchanging teams.
The trade was a shock to everyone as the front office did not give any leads to insiders. The deal changed the dynamics in the NBA as one of the biggest stars is now playing for a storied franchise. Ironically, the trade happened on the exact day Gasol was traded by the Memphis Grizzlies to the Lakers in 2008.
Gasol appeared on the “Knuckleheads” podcast, hosted by former NBA players Darius Miles and Quentin Richardson on Tuesday. In his appearance, the two-time champion talked about his initial reaction to the massive trade.
“Obviously, at first, surprised, shocked. It was hard to kind of digest that that actually happened, that that type of player gets traded at 25 years old. It just doesn’t happen, never happened, might not happen ever again. But it happened for whatever reason. It’s crazy because I’ve known Nico [Harrison], I know Rob [Pelinka] personally for a long time,” Gasol said (1:13:29).
The Spanish former basketball star also revealed that he had just talked to Davis a few days before the Lakers made the trade.
“I was just talking to AD when they came to play here vs. the Warriors, and we were going to get together. He wanted to help the Lakers win another championship and prolong and extend obviously. He wasn’t thinking he was going anywhere.”
Just like Gasol’s arrival to the franchise, he expects the Los Angeles Lakers to become title contenders with Doncic.
Gasol is “excited” for the Los Angeles Lakers
There’s a lot of expectation for the Los Angeles Lakers to become a championship team with Doncic. The last time they were a serious threat to other teams to win the title was during the 2019-20 season when they eventually won it all.
This season, they have a generational talent, and Gasol is interested to watch how the pairing plays out.
“From the Lakers standpoint, they seem pretty excited. You feel like hey, I’ve got a huge win here. I’ve got a guy that I can build my franchise around… So obviously exciting times for the Lakers. Interesting and challenging times maybe for the Mavs where they’ve put themselves in a position where they’re gonna have to deliver quick. Nothing short of a Finals might not cut it. A lot of layers, a lot of depth to this move that it’s quite incredibly. Unprecedented, really.”
With the five-time All-Star, the Lakers have improved their chances of winning the championship. Los Angeles is now third in the Western Conference with a 43-25 record.
For other sports-related content:
Follow me on X at @BarbecueBro, and follow us at @HardwoodHeroics and @GridironHeroics. You can also reach out to Reign Amurao via email at reignamuraonba@gmail.com. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest sports news, click here!
Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
