There have been trade rumors swirling around Los Angeles, and power forward Pau Gasol’s name has been mentioned in a lot of them. Gasol’s role on the team has diminished ever since D’Antoni took over. Instead of playing him in the paint, the Lakers have turned Gasol into a stretch 4. So, basically, D’Antoni has been wasting Gasol’s talents in order to put his offensive system first.
Because of this, Gasol’s trade value has decreased dramatically. Now that the Lakers replaced him with Earl Clark in the starting rotation, they might not be able to get 50 cents on the dollar for Gasol. It also doesn’t help that he’s making $19 million per year over the last two seasons of his contract.
I think the Lakers would be better off trading away Dwight Howard instead of Gasol.
There’s a decent chance Howard will bolt from the Lakers in the offseason. The odds of him leaving increase even more if the Lakers decide to retain D’Antoni. And if the Lakers trade away Gasol and can’t re-sign Howard in the offseason, they’d be back at square one.
Also, the Lakers would be able to get more pieces for Howard, even though he has an expiring contract. Though Howard has been criticized mightily for his play this season, some of his stats don’t tell that story. He’s averaging an elite 12.3 rebounds a game and 2.5 blocks per game. Howard’s shooting over 58 percent from the field as well. It wouldn’t be hard for the Lakers to find a suitor willing to give up a good amount for...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
