| Join Date: | Aug 2007 |
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| Location: | TLN |
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Breaking Down Gasol's Return To The Court
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For the record, Andrew Bynum got the first touch. Pau Gasol got the first basket, tipping in a missed shot to start the Lakers on their way to a 108-93 victory over the Bulls.
So it began, the process of figuring out how things would work now that the Lakers had their starting lineup intact with Gasol back from a hamstring injury that caused him to miss the first 11 games of the season.
Gasol looked more tired than rusty, scoring 24 points on 9-for-15 shooting, grabbing 13 rebounds and blocking a shot. His sense of timing was good, often winding up just in the right place to collect seven offensive rebounds. And then there was a moment of pure luck: Chicago's Joakim Noah tried to save a ball underneath the Lakers' basket, only to have it bounce directly to Gasol, who was all alone for a layup.
Gasol needs the most work on conditioning; no amount of treadmill work prepares you for an NBA game, and he looked winded four minutes in.
"I was looking forward to the first timeout," he said. "I was glad we had a nationally televised game, because [the timeouts] were a little bit longer."
Of course, with Gasol back, the Lakers were a bit longer themselves.
"They not only have length, they have talent," Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro said. "It's one thing to be tall, but there's also being tall and talented, and they've got both."
There can be such a thing as too much talent, however, and if the Lakers aren't overloaded, they're at the very least stuffed. With Bynum, Gasol, Ron Artest and Lamar Odom, they have four starting-caliber players for the three frontcourt spots -- not to mention a certain guard who likes to get his share of shots.
Odom returned to his spot on the bench, although Phil Jackson actually used him as much as Bynum, who twisted an ankle during the game. (Odom was dinged-up too, with a cut above his right eye that required six stitches.) Odom wound up with eight rebounds and 11 points, giving the Lakers six double-digit scorers. Call him even.
Gasol's return did produce his share of winners and losers.
"Winner": Ron Artest. It was thought he might become a forgotten fourth option on offense with Gasol back. But the Bulls left him alone while they dealt with the Lakers' big men, and he scored 15 points after finishing with a single digit in the points column in three of the previous five games.
"Loser": Andrew Bynum. He had his lowest scoring game of the season, finishing with 11 points on 5-for-12 shooting. He tied his season low in field goal attempts, although it was consistent with the 12.6 attempts he had averaged in the previous three games.
"Winner": Kobe Bryant's passing. He had a season-high eight assists, including a couple of cross-lane lobs to Bynum.
"Loser": Kobe Bryant's scoring. He's been most aggressive in the first quarter this season, but Thursday he let Gasol and Bynum take their turns before finally posting up John Salmons for a lefty hook. He wound up with 21 points on 21 shots (seven made). Even on a night when he was below his season average of 31 points, he still set a scoring milestone, reaching career point 24,182 to move past Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and into second place on the Lakers' all-time list. (The Logo, Jerry West, is first at 25,192).
"Loser": Gasol's teammates. Jackson contemplated giving the Lakers the day off Friday, but decided they need to spend more time getting acclimated to Gasol. So it's back to work at their facility in El Segundo.
"I told Phil and I told my teammates, you can have the day off and I'll come in and get my work done," Gasol said. "But Phil wants us to practice, and that's the bottom line. I'm sorry my teammates have to come in, too."
If the early returns hold up, they'll welcome Gasol back, even if it means an extra practice.
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