4: Pau Gasol returns to his old form
There is no doubt Pau Gasol has not been the same player he once was in the past two post-season. Gasol was a dominant power forward for the Lakers in 2009 and 2010 during the Lakers’ back-to-back titles.
The team could rely on Gasol to give 100 percent in every game and he erased the notorious “soft” label from his reputation. However, the Lakers have been eliminated from the second round in the past two years and many have put most of the blame on Gasol.
Gasol played a key role in the Lakers’ rout of the Orlando Magic in 2009 and was a key contributor in the Lakers’ Game 7 win over the Boston Celtics. However, all that intensity of physicality was lost during the 2011 post-season and again in the 2012 Western Conference Semi-Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Gasol and Dwight Howard would make an incredible team, and Bryant is hoping he sees the same Gasol that helped him win two rings.
httpvhd://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQQobw_JrJU
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