Pau Gasol Sáez[b] (Catalan: [ˈpaw ɣəˈzɔl], Spanish: [ˈpaw ɣaˈsol]; born July 6, 1980) is a Spanish former professional basketball player. He was a six-time NBA All-Star and a four-time All-NBA team selection, twice on the second team and twice on the third team. Gasol won two NBA championships, both with the Los Angeles Lakers back-to-back in 2009 and 2010. He was the NBA Rookie of the Year in 2002 with the Memphis Grizzlies, being the first non-American player to have won that award. He is regarded as one of the greatest power forwards of all time and is also considered as one of the greatest European players of all time.[4][5][6][7] He is the older brother of former NBA player Marc Gasol.
Gasol was selected by the Atlanta Hawks with the third overall pick in the first round of the 2001 NBA draft, but his rights were traded to the Vancouver Grizzlies. He holds the Grizzlies' franchise record for free throws made and attempted.[8] Following more than six seasons with Memphis, Gasol played for the Los Angeles Lakers (2008–2014), the Chicago Bulls (2014–2016), the San Antonio Spurs (2016–2019), and the Milwaukee Bucks (2019).
Internationally, Gasol has won a FIBA World Cup title, three EuroBasket titles, two Olympic silver medals, and an Olympic bronze medal with the Spanish national basketball team. Gasol was named MVP of the 2006 FIBA World Cup, and MVP of the 2009 and 2015 FIBA EuroBasket. Pau Gasol shares (with Krešimir Ćosić) the record for most EuroBasket MVP awards, with two each. Gasol is also the all-time leading scorer in the EuroBasket.
In 2021, he became a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).[9] In 2023, it was announced that Gasol would be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.[10]
- ^ Case, Jeff (November 1, 2019). "13 facts to know from 2019-20 NBA Roster Survey". NBA.com. Archived from the original on September 24, 2020. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
- ^ Hudon, Jamie (September 26, 2019). "NBA cracking down on lying about players' height". NBCSports.com. Archived from the original on October 26, 2021. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
- ^ "Pau Gasol | Los Angeles Lakers". NBA.com. Archived from the original on November 6, 2023. Retrieved November 6, 2023.
- ^ "All-Time #NBArank: Duncan tops list of best power forwards ever". ESPN. January 15, 2016. Archived from the original on June 11, 2017. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
- ^ "20 greatest power forwards ever: The HoopsHype list". hoopshype.com. November 21, 2021. Archived from the original on December 5, 2022. Retrieved November 21, 2021.
- ^ "40 greatest European players ever: The HoopsHype list". hoopshype.com. January 11, 2022. Archived from the original on January 11, 2022. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
- ^ "Top 25 European Basketball Players Of All-Time". homeofplaymakers.com. January 17, 2022. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
- ^ "Memphis Grizzlies Career Leaders". Basketball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on August 22, 2011. Retrieved May 17, 2008.
- ^ "Mr Pau Gasol". The International Olympic Committee. August 8, 2021. Archived from the original on August 17, 2021. Retrieved August 17, 2021.
- ^ "Dirk Nowitzki, Dwyane Wade headline Naismith Hall of Fame Class of 2023". NBA.com. Associated Press. April 1, 2023. Archived from the original on April 2, 2023. Retrieved April 1, 2023.
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).