Everything Marc Gasol

[slaw]

That's the hope here, that Gasol is going to impact winning in ways that don't show up in box score columns. I mean for all JV's hyper efficiency (and as much as I love him), his role has been diminishing under two different coaches in spite of his general improvements, productivity, and great mentality. The game is changing around big men and a team has a harder and harder time making good use of a skill set like JV's. With the passing, IQ, defensive awareness, and outside shot, Gasol definitely brings some versatility that JV just doesn't have.

I would say it's even more than that. 15 seconds left, game 7 against the Bucks. Raps down by 1. Ball goes in to Leonard. Bucks blitz him. They cut off the perimeter passing lanes. Nowhere to go. Your big shoots to the high post. Leonard dumps it to him. Lopez smashes him with an elbow and rips at his arms. Guards flash around him looking to strip the ball. Your big turns and surveys the floor. He's got .5 second to make a decision. Would you rather that be JV, Serge Ibaka or Marc Gasol? Now, imagine similar plays happening 100 times/game in the playoffs on both ends of the floor.

I like JV. JV always showed up in the playoffs when other guys, ahem Derozan and Lowry, went MIA. I remember JV winning them that Pacers series and completely dominating Hassan "max contract" Whiteside. JV would definitely have helped the Raps in the playoffs. But Gasol is an entirely different creature.

[Blacklash2k4]

https://www.basketball-reference.com...1/gamelog/2019
https://www.basketball-reference.com...1/gamelog/2018

I was curious after reading up on power rankings after the trade deadline and wanted to see how Embiid plays when facing Memphis and Gasol. I was pleasantly shocked. Firstly, Embiid is a beast looking at his game logs. However, what shocked me was how Gasol has pretty much consistently "shut down" Embiid in the two games they've played each other in both the 2017-2018 & 2018-2019 season. He logged the fewest points against Memphis than any other team! So from an Eastern Conference second playoff standpoint, this is a great addition to stop Embiid!

[LJ2]

I don't think you can compare Gasol and JV just with box score analysis. JV is a really efficient/productive PTS and REB getter, so he looks great there. In almost every other way, including various advanced stats, Gasol has JV beat. Nearly everyone in the NBA outside of Toronto would argue that on intangibles like IQ/leadership/impact, Gasol is miles ahead of JV.

That's the hope here, that Gasol is going to impact winning in ways that don't show up in box score columns. I mean for all JV's hyper efficiency (and as much as I love him), his role has been diminishing under two different coaches in spite of his general improvements, productivity, and great mentality. The game is changing around big men and a team has a harder and harder time making good use of a skill set like JV's. With the passing, IQ, defensive awareness, and outside shot, Gasol definitely brings some versatility that JV just doesn't have.

A pretty big question though is how this creates overlap with Ibaka and Siakam. Toronto's success year to date had been though playing bigs almost as little as possible and playing tons of wings with size. This is how JV found himself on the bench in the first place. Now you've basically got 3 starter quality bigs and you'll only want to play 2 of them at a time and often only 1. Nurse is going to have to avoid losing potential to redundancy.

I think trading for Gasol was as much about defense as it was about his offense. The Raptors, despite having a generational defensive player on their roster have not been consistently very good on D. Gasol, though he's older and slower is still incredibly smart and is a very good defender. I expect the Raptors to improve a lot on that side of the court with this addition.

[KeonClark]

Works out nice. We can get a 5-on-5 practice in at MSG before coming home to play the Nets.

Yeah, but it'd be nice if we could get a practice against our own players or our coaches, or even 5 intense posters at RR rather than the Knicks. You'd prefer a challenge

[3inthekeon]

With both PGs (Lowry and FVV) posing very little threat to score at the rim, opposing defenses are collapsing on everybody else and giving up the Serge pick & pop, or 3-pter. Gasol excels at that - JV doesn't. The bigger problem is that both JV and Serge are huuuge black holes on offense, and the players all stop moving, or get in position for a rebound as soon as they get the ball. It's pretty evident now that Nurse's free flowing offense requires very high IQ players who have the ability to make on-the-fly decisions whether to shoot, pass or dribble. JV and Serge suck at that, whereas Gasol is still the best passing center in the game. That's going to keep everybody moving while the defense collapses on him. Biggest question is if 20 something games are really enough to develop that passing chemistry.

Nic Jokic?

[golden]

Nic Jokic?

This is a Marc Gasol hype thread. Security..... escort this man out, please.

[planetmars]

I would say it's even more than that. 15 seconds left, game 7 against the Bucks. Raps down by 1. Ball goes in to Leonard. Bucks blitz him. They cut off the perimeter passing lanes. Nowhere to go. Your big shoots to the high post. Leonard dumps it to him. Lopez smashes him with an elbow and rips at his arms. Guards flash around him looking to strip the ball. Your big turns and surveys the floor. He's got .5 second to make a decision. Would you rather that be JV, Serge Ibaka or Marc Gasol? Now, imagine similar plays happening 100 times/game in the playoffs on both ends of the floor.

I like JV. JV always showed up in the playoffs when other guys, ahem Derozan and Lowry, went MIA. I remember JV winning them that Pacers series and completely dominating Hassan "max contract" Whiteside. JV would definitely have helped the Raps in the playoffs. But Gasol is an entirely different creature.

Or he could take 15-20 shots through out the game and miss more than half of them and we'd be in a whole through out the game trying to catch up for all his misses.

Or you need a big rebound since someone missed an open 3, and the opposing team got it and you lost a possession.

It can go both ways.

I feel like I'm being a negative nelly here. I want this to work so bad.

I will try to make this my last pessimistic post on this trade. Well, until I actually see him play as a Raptor, and then no holds barred!

[MixxAOR]

I'm so nervous on how this will all work out

[G__Deane]

Good point. Who is going to rip down rebounds on this team? Kawhi a few. Serge? OG? Gasol? lol

[iblastoff]

Because JV is supremely overrated here because DanH has hyped his Kanter/Vucevic lookalike play for the past who knows how long, and people just eat up whatever he says even when it's clearly wrong.

i thought you left

[iblastoff]

When the fuck did JV ever average 24.5 points and 13.8 rebounds?

This ass clown is comparing PER36 numbers, which is fucking retarded and pretty much the worst analysis possible.

projecting per 36 numbers for someone who played WAY less really exaggerates the stat too.

[KeonClark]

https://www.instagram.com/p/BtnAQEfh..._state_control

Marc Gasol shared to his IG story a gift bag when he landed in Toronto, complete with Raptors toques and jerseys for his kids

edit: SO maybe not playing Saturday? Or else why fly to Toronto and not NYC

[Maury]

Because JV is supremely overrated here because DanH has hyped his Kanter/Vucevic lookalike play for the past who knows how long, and people just eat up whatever he says even when it's clearly wrong.

Ok let’s be racist then

[3inthekeon]

This is a Marc Gasol hype thread. Security..... escort this man out, please.

Makin' me feel like Oak at Madison Square, goldolan.

[G__Deane]

https://www.instagram.com/p/BtnAQEfh..._state_control

Marc Gasol shared to his IG story a gift bag when he landed in Toronto, complete with Raptors toques and jerseys for his kids

edit: SO maybe not playing Saturday? Or else why fly to Toronto and not NYC

Maybe there's a presser Friday and then fly to NY for practice, morning shootaround and the game?


Funny IG comment: Why didn't they include some CJ PJ's and an itty bitty baller?