Laker Rumors: L.A. Should Take in Caution in Dealing for Rudy Gay

The Lakers are still trying to work out their kinks, the Grizzlies are still trying to shed money and the Celtics are blowing things up. Put it all together and you get a very fascinating Lakers rumor.

ESPN's Marc Stein posted an interesting article today in which he theorizes a three-way trade where Paul Pierce heads to Memphis, Pau Gasol goes to Boston and Los Angeles lands Rudy Gay.

At first glance it makes a lot of sense.

First off, the Lakers would shed Pau Gasol. The talented power forward just isn't cutting it in D'Antoni's system and needs to be moved.

Second, it would land L.A. a very talented small forward and scorer in Rudy Gay. The extra offensive punch would help spread the floor and balance out the Lakers.

But those are just surface level observations. We need to dig a little deeper to see that this might not be the best trade for the Lakers.

First off, Rudy Gay—despite what his sizable contract may tell you—is not an NBA All-Star.

Is he a solid small forward? Yes. Is he a scoring threat? Absolutely. Does he have the consistency to be a top-five player at his position? That's arguable.

Gay exploded onto the seen in 2007/08, but his stats have never looked the same since. He looked to be peaking in 2010/11, and has been on the decline since.

This season, Gay's points, steals and assists per game, as well as his shooting percentage, have all declined from the year before. The same stats have been declining since that 2010/11 campaign.

The most interesting thing about that 2010/11 season—in which Gay scored 19.8 points per game—was that he shot a career high 39.6 percent on three-pointers.

That number took a hit last season, and this year he's shooting a career low 30.1 percent.

Gay's potential has always been there, but at 26 years old his stats are already on the decline. He can add some punch to a t...

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