Nba player pau gasol

Born: July 6in Barcelona, Spain es.

Pau Gasol played a leading role in the secondary wave of talented foreign prospects who changed the NBA forever. Basketball no longer has U. Not only are legions of kids from Sydney to Senegal dribbling balls now instead of kicking them, there are professional players coming from these and many other parts worldwide, including world champions, Olympians, NBA All-Stars — MVPs even! This welcomed hoops trend was decades in the making, jump-started originally by the fall of the Eastern Bloc, then the mining of Africa for untapped talent, and of course by the barnstorming Dream Team that ruled the Summer Games and influenced millions from the charming Spanish host city of Barcelona. Just by coincidence, as Michael Jordan and Larry Bird and Magic Johnson teamed up and put on an Olympic show in Spain, they were watched closely by a local kid, not yet a teenager, who would soon come to reflect the global game as we know today. Pau Gasol made his big-time basketball splash years later. In that sense, he had no basketball boundaries.

Nba player pau gasol

Just six months after securing that starting position with FC Barcelona, and after scoring an average In , after 18 seasons in the NBA, Pau returned to Barcelona, the city where he was born and where he began to play professional basketball. It won the League that year and played in the final of the Euroleague. That same year he announced his retirement from professional basketball. Pau was selected on the third round of the NBA draft by the Atlanta Hawks, who ceded him to the Memphis Grizzlies, where he played six and a half seasons. Pau thus became the first non-US player to be chosen in such an early round of the draft at the time. At the time, he was the only non-American player to do so. In , he would be selected for the All-Star Game, the first Spaniard ever to be chosen. In his last season at Memphis, he averaged In February of he was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, where he formed a great combination with Kobe Bryant, who would later say that Pau was one of the three players he most enjoyed working with in his whole career. He became the first Spaniard to win an NBA ring, which was immediately followed by a second one. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Prize for his support of different charitable works.

Archived from the original on April 14, Pau thus became the first non-US player to be chosen in such an early round of the draft at the time.

Pau Gasol is an advisor, an investor and an activist in projects related to sports and well-being. Pau Gasol began his professional basketball career at FC Barcelona. When he returned to the club 20 years later in , at the request of coach Saras Jasikevicius, the team finished second in the EuroLeague. Later that year, he announced his retirement from professional basketball. Pau became only the second Spanish player to reach the NBA. During his first season with the Grizzlies, he earned the Rookie of the Year award, becoming the first non-US player to receive this distinction.

Born: July 6 , in Barcelona, Spain es. Compare Pau Gasol to other players. Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? Subscribe to our Free Email Newsletter. Do you have a sports website? Or write about sports? We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data.

Nba player pau gasol

The trade , of course, did happen — the secret staying that way until the Lakers pulled off the deal sending Kwame Brown, Javaris Crittenton, Aaron McKie, a first-round draft pick and the rights to Marc Gasol to Memphis for Pau Gasol. Lakers great Pau Gasol granted LA. Times reporter Broderick Turner a one-on-one interview ahead of the Hall of Fame induction. I want to become better. I want to be the best that I can be. In , the Grizzlies were floundering in Vancouver and owner Michael Heisley decided to relocate. Louisville, New Orleans and Anaheim were among the cities considered, but ultimately, the franchise landed in Memphis. He was this young, fearless, skillful, , , , around that. He was a player that played outside.

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Archived from the original on December 19, Archived from the original on March 24, Spain men's basketball squad — Summer Olympics — Silver medal. January 26, Archived from the original on May 19, Until then, most international players either stayed and played professionally in Europe or were role players in the NBA. An avid reader and amateur writer, in Pau launched his second book, Bajo el Aro, Under the Hoop in which he shares his experiences and lessons in victory and defeat from his long career. Advanced Bold indicates league leader. Archived from the original on September 25, Succeeded by Rafael Nadal. Archived from the original on January 2, At the time, he was one of four players ranked among Western Conference forwards in the top ten in points, rebounds, assists and blocked shots. Gasol Nowitzki Kirilenko Parker M.

The year-old had already announced his farewell from international basketball in August after Spain lost to the United States in the quarterfinals of the Tokyo Games, which marked his fifth Olympics. Gasol had been with Spanish club Barcelona since February. His career had stalled before that because a stress fracture in his left foot that lingered and kept him from playing for nearly two years.

Archived from the original on May 19, All-Time Greats : E. Archived from the original on September 23, Shaun Powell has covered the NBA for more than 25 years. What are Pau Gasol's nicknames? Hall of Fame: Class of Guards R. July 14, He became a crucial figure in the second wave of internationals who hooked just as many fans in the U. He could play inside with tricky up-and-under moves and pump fakes in the post. That same year he announced his retirement from professional basketball. Euroscar Award winners. He was named Western Conference Player of the Week. When he had his Lakers jersey retired earlier this year , Gasol took a moment to reflect on his basketball whirlwind.