Kobe, General Manager That He Is, Thinks the Lakers Could Have Kept Marc Gasol

Marc Gasol hasn't been dominant in Beijing, but it's pretty clear the Grizzlies may have gotten themselves a valuable asset in Pau Gasol's little brother. The younger Gasol is bigger, meatier, and shows a very un-Pau-like penchant for diving after loose balls and playing physical basketball, while displaying a very Pau-like touch offensively. So much so that the Memphis Commercial Appeal points out that he's getting praise from all sorts of members of Team USA.

The most interesting may have come from Kobe Bryant, though. In the article, Kobe drops this delicious little insight into the mind of a superstar with the authority to have impact on personnel decisions:

"In hindsight, we probably didn't have to give him up to get Pau," Bryant said. "We should have kept Marc, too."

Okay, Kobes. Didn't realize you had so much experience in negotiating trades. I kid, I kid. Kobe's obviously just trying to complement the guy. But if we were to take a closer look at it, there are two ways you can take the statement from Mamba. It's either A. an admission that the Lakers may not have ripped off the Grizzlies quite as bad as initially thought (a paradigm that's becoming more and more popular with each Grizzlies move), or B. the exact opposite, an even further condemnation of how little the Grizzlies' front office are to be thought of. As in, they probably didn't have to give up Marc to get Pau, since the Grizzlies will let pretty much anything go.

The Pau Gasol trade started off as being considered highway robbery. It certainly looks that way to the naked eye. But examine what the Grizzlies have done since with what they received. Nabbed Marc Gasol to work in complement to Darko Milicic (or replace him), traded Kevin Love for O.J. Mayo to land one of the most exciting draft picks they've had in years, landed Javaris Crittenton, who's either going to be a capable combo guard to backup Mike Conley and Mayo, managed to maintain their cap space and acquire more expiring contracts. They took a shot at Josh Smith, and even though it was matched, they still have a significant portion to spend in the next two big free agency summers.

Then again, Pau Gasol did help the Lakers get to the NBA Finals, and have them set to dominate the Western Conference for years to come. But there's a common philosophy that to really rebuild, you have to move your biggest contract and maintain flexibility. The Grizzlies did that, and they're looking to the future, not to win now. And considering Gasol never got them far in the playoffs anyway, for many of the same reasons that he had trouble in the Finals, keeping him wasn't their biggest priority. It's not that the Lakers didn't make out like a bandit in the trade, they did. But as time goes by, the gap between the two on what they landed in the trade has narrowed significantly. I'm sure Kobe won't mind losing Marc if the Lakers win a title or three, though. And if Marc Gasol ends up as another failed experiment in the NBA at forward/center for the Grizzlies, they're back to square one in the big man department.

(HT: Red's Army)