Pau Gasol Prevails With Toughness, a Catalyst to the Lakers

It’s the equivalent of perplexing drama and craftiness the Los Angeles Lakers expose on a large population in Hollywood, among a postseason of uncertainty and unpredictability. At times, it’s really mind-blowing to figure out a ravishing franchise representing Hollywood, with its symbolic convention of inheriting multiple championship banners and assembling the deepest and most talented cast.

For once, the up and down commodity plunged in a critical Game Six against the emerging Oklahoma City Thunder, tapering dismay and startling insights of deflating in perhaps the most disappointing upset in NBA history.

It was a paradigm of survival, when the seven-foot forward named Pau Gasol lifted the Lakers to a jittery, tense 95-94 win to salvage the best-of-seven series in six games of the first-round playoff series. A few years ago, the town waited for his softness to vanish, and criticized Gasol of laziness and failures on dominating inside the middle with his immeasurable size advantage.

Finally in an acute game, the Spaniard exerted his height advantage and fiercely drove to the rim on Kobe Bryant’s missed jumper and tipped in the poor attempt, then pumped his fist and celebrated in bliss.

At a hostile territory, the crowd erupted and tried to corrode the defending champs of momentum and rhythm. The crowd serenaded “Beat L.A.! Beat L.A.!" That was until, of course, the Lakers perpetuated a late rally to silence 18,342 fans in attendance, wearing blue T-shirts and bracing the home team believing in the near-improbable.

In a sense, Gasol won it, with his mental toughness and willpower to impress of a fiercely approach. To his advantage, he had the oversized strength and height, grabbing 18 rebounds to bolster struggling shooting. All of the sudden the Lakers were reestablished as a villainous franchise, with his toughness and fortitude.

It was a crazy series and an e...