On the surface, Pau Gasol’s resume doesn’t necessarily pop like other elite big man resumes. He was never named 1st Team All-NBA, and made the 2nd and 3rd teams just twice each over 18 seasons. Throw in the fact that he never received a single MVP vote, and you might be wondering what all the fuss is about. However, if we dig just a little deeper, a pretty stellar resume starts to emerge. First, it’s important to note that Gasol was a strong player for Memphis during his first 6.5 seasons in the NBA, averaging 18.8 ppg, 8.6 rpg, and 1.8 blocks per game on 51% shooting. His Player Efficiency Rating (PER) was among the top-20 in the league over this stretch. Had Gasol just continued that level of output for the remainder of his career, he would’ve been an easy inclusion in the top-100. Instead, Gasol’s second act not only saw him become a playoff powerhouse, but also a star on the international stage.
Gasol might be most known for his 6.5-year run with the Lakers, where he helped LA win back-to-back NBA Championships and reach three consecutive NBA Finals. Using the word “help” to describe Gasol’s impact is probably already in the pantheon of understatements. It would be more accurate to say that he had arguably the biggest impact that any mid-year acquisition has ever had on an NBA franchise. That sounds crazy, but the results bear it out. Following Shaquille O’Neal’s departure from the Lakers after the 2003-04 NBA season, Kobe Bryant struggled to gain traction as the focal point of the franchise. The Lakers missed the playoffs altogether in 2005, and then were bounced from the playoffs in the first round in 2006 and 2007. LA’s record over this stretch was an unremarkable 121-125 (49.1%). The moment the Lakers acquired Gasol, the team went on a 22-4 run with Gasol in the lineup to close out the 2007-08 regular season, and the rest is history. The Lakers would win at least 57 games over Gasol’s first four years with the team, including 65 wins in 2008-09. Gasol provided the Lakers the low-post grit that they had sorely missed following Shaq’s departure. He averaged 19 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks in the Finals during LA’s back-to-back championship runs, and he piled up the most Win Shares in the 2010 NBA Playoffs.
Gasol’s impact on the Lakers was sudden and extraordinary, and it’s probably the capstone achievement on his resume. However, coming in a very close second is what he did on the international stage against countries stacked with NBA talent. Gasol played at five Olympic Games, garnering Spain two silver medals and a bronze. Spain had not finished better than 7th at the previous five Olympic Games before breaking through with Gasol in Beijing in 2008. Gasol led the Athens (‘04) and Beijing (‘08) Olympic Games in scoring and finished 4th in scoring in both London (‘12) and Rio (‘16). He has the 3rd most points, 2nd most rebounds, and the most blocks in Olympic basketball history.
Gasol also led Spain to the gold medal at the 2006 FIBA World Championship, where he was named the tournament MVP. Prior to Gasol’s heroics, Spain had never finished better than 4th at the World Championships. Gasol was a top-5 scorer at all three FIBA World Championships that he participated in, and is the 8th leading scorer in the history of the tournament.
Every year, NBA teams make deals at the trade deadline, hoping to find lightning in a bottle for a franchise looking to make noise in the playoffs. Even in a sport notorious for optimistic general managers, nobody expects a player to have the type of impact that Gasol had on the Lakers. Similarly, there are fans in basketball-starved countries all across the world who dream of seeing their countries legitimately compete for the first time at the highest levels on the international stage. For Spain, that happened when Pau Gasol entered the building. Few players in the history of basketball have had such an immense impact on not just an NBA franchise, but also an entire country.