The Spaniard speaks to EL MUNDO in Los Angeles, hours before the Lakers retire his jersey with the number 16. “It will be a very surreal moment to live,” he confesses.
Long before the Lakers passed sentence, Kobe Bryant She had already settled the debate with the forcefulness that characterized her. “When (Pau) retires, I’ll have his number on the ceiling next to mine,” she told her. Antonio Martin, the then correspondent for the EFE agency in Los Angeles at the luncheon for the 2018 Oscar nominees. “The reality is that those championships would not have been won without Pau. The city of Los Angeles would not have those two championships without Pau. Everybody knows that. I really look forward to the day when he’s up there giving his speech at center field in front of all the fans.” Five years after that categorical presumption, the time has come for the giant from Sant Boi de Llobregat, who is undoubtedly the best player in the history of Spanish basketball.
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Pau Gasol: “I don’t think about politics”
Pau Gasol: “I don’t think about politics”
On Tuesday night, he will once again be the undisputed protagonist in what was his home for six and a half seasons. His shirt, number 16, will ascend at halftime in the match between the Lakers and the Grizzlies -the team in which he debuted and became a figure in the NBA- to the skies of Crypto.com, where they already rest, among others. , those of Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, James Worthy, Wilt Chamberlain, Shaquille O’Neal and both of his inseparable friend, his “brother” Kobe. It will be difficult not to shed tears.
At the moment, he confesses, his nerves are not being controlled too well. “Yes, I’m quite nervous. I’m not going to lie to you,” she confesses in an interview with El Mundo. “In the end it is a rare sensation, caused by the immensity of this moment that it transmits to me.” The 2006 world champion and three-time European champion says he feels “tremendously lucky and happy to share it with all the people who have accompanied me on this journey.”
- What do you think was the key to fitting in so well and so quickly with the Lakers?
- There were a series of circumstances that made my fit perfect, as if I had been playing with them for a long time. Maybe it was the type of player that they lacked at that moment, within the triangle of Phil (Jackson). That, in addition to the desire that team had to win, especially Kobe. I don’t think there was anyone more hungry to win than him after the years when he couldn’t take the ring, so when the opportunity presented itself I embraced it with everything. And the impact was immediate.
- To what extent did Kobe influence the removal of his jersey?
- The statement he made was very important and shocking, even for this event to happen now. I don’t know if it would have happened otherwise if she hadn’t spoken. What is certain is that Kobe’s role in my life and in my career has been decisive.
- Does this put you up there with the likes of Magic Johnson or Kareem Abdul-Jabbar?
- I don’t know. I can only tell you that I am happy and that I am privileged to belong to that group. It’s going to be a very surreal moment to live.
- Of all the audiences you’ve dealt with, was the Lakers’ the most difficult to win over?
- I have always tried to be true to myself, above all to be a person with values, respectful, a player that people appreciate, not only for what he does but for how he does it. I have always taken the time with the fans, to listen to them, take photos, get involved with the community, especially with the children, visit hospitals. In the end, being kind, affable, humble is what is important, and that makes people appreciate you, no matter how many points you score.
- Is there anything bigger than the Lakers in basketball?
- I don’t know, but I can’t think of any bigger team. I have had the privilege of being part of this spectacular team, of being a part of it for six and a half seasons. It is a unique and unrepeatable franchise.
There remain his 429 games with an average of 17.7 points, 9.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game, the best complement to a Bryant who had been left without title options after the transfer of Shaquille O’Neal in 2007. The day his transfer was announced, February 1, 2008, half of Los Angeles became excited again. The emotion was palpable. “Gasol is a Laker!” wrote the head of sports for the city’s leading daily, the Los Angeles Times. Shortly after an exchange took effect that cost the Californians three players and the rights of the draft his brother’s, Marc Gasol.
The Lakers reached the final that year against the Boston Celtics, but fell heavily in Game 6. They will not take long to recover from the blow. The following two seasons saw the two rings that Gasol has, a milestone for which the franchise has decided to withdraw his shirt, ahead of other players with more titles, such as Derek Fisher, Byron Scott o Michael Cooper.
He will be the first foreign player to achieve it with the Lakers and, of course, the first Spaniard. He is not the first European in the NBA. Before him they received that honor the late Drazen Petrovic (with the Nets), Vlade Divac and Peja Stojakovic con los Sacramento Kings, Zydruns Ilgauskas with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Dirk Nowitzki with the Dallas Mavericks, and the French Tony Parker with the San Antonio Spurs.
Ahead, the work of his foundation, perhaps more important than what has been achieved so far on the pitch: getting children to play to promote healthy habits and prevent the epidemic of childhood obesity in the world. Founded in 2013 in the United States, the organization works with 80,000 minors and adults a year. The work and the legacy of a world basketball myth continue.
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