Written by John Randolph Rogers
Tuesday, 21 February 2012 20:52
Pau Gasol is a professional basketball player in the NBA. He plays for the Lakers and he has two more years on a guaranteed contract that will pay him $19 million per year. It appears that he has been upset and moping since there are rumors that he may be traded to another team. While this trade may be an inconvenience, his salary will not change. So, he will not get any sympathy from the many fans that have lost both their jobs and their salaries.
Gasol is a very skilled and dependable athlete. However, it seems to me that he has not dedicated himself to being nearly as good as he could be. He is the puniest NBA athlete that I have ever seen. In addition to their basketball skills, NBA players must have considerable body strength and stamina.
Gasol is always the weakest one on the floor. He is such a nice man that apparently no one has ever required him to go to a gymnasium and lift some weights. He could probably make a deal with the Lakers, by adding 2 or 3 pounds of muscle, in return for not being traded.
The Lakers do have problems. They were blindsided by NBA Commissioner David Stern, who voided a trade that they had made with the New Orleans Hornets. No previous trade had ever been voided, and there was no reason to believe that this one would be. However, Mr. Stern, for reasons known only to him, did not allow the trade that would have delivered Chris Paul through the Lakers, who would give up both Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol. So, now the teams are standing around waiting for the other shoe to drop, when, and if, it will.
Derek Fisher is an unsung hero. He has been with the Lakers for 16 years. He and Kobe Bryant were rookies at the same time. He is a gentle, dignified man, who never calls attention to himself. Underneath that gentle demeanor, beats the heart of a champion. There is no one in the league, who has taken more charges. He has been knocked to the floor many times, but he always gets up. He has probably had more game-winning shots than any other Laker and that includes Kobe Bryant, who has always felt that it was his sole right to take the last shot. As President of the NBA's Player Association, he was a calm, dignified tower of strength.
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