I'm skeptical that it's worth the risk, but, outside of alleyoops...he can do everything Capela does and more. Remember he shoots three pointers now. He has actual offensive moves for crunch time. He shoots free throws well too. Can he run the floor as fast? Probably not. Other than the natural chemistry changes that occur when you make any change to your starting line up, on paper it doesn't seem like it should be any less effective than our current line up. Biggest thing for me is age. Are we going all in with CP3 for a year or 2 or are we looking to build a dynasty for the next decade? I say you keep Capela if you're thinking the latter.
I think before the season you might be able to argue this. Now... I don't think so. Capela plays "bigger" every year. Gasol plays "smaller" every year. Capela is already at this point the much better rebounder for example. I'd take Gasol for sure, but not at the expense of Capela... who is SO KEY to the 4 out + 1 big rolling PnR game of Harden's. Outside of obvious "of course you trade Capela for that guy" trades, which this definitely isn't, the absolutely only reason DM trades Capela at this point is if he's positive he can't make Clint fit into the team's plans next year from a cap, RFA perspective. Which I don't see as the case at all. As a RFA, the risk is that he signs something like or close to a max type offer IMMEDIATELY when FA starts. Otherwise, I suspect DM will match any such offer.
I'm not 100% sold. I wonder what the offense would look like with: Gasol Tucker Ariza Harden Paul I can see Ariza/Tucker filling the corners while the other 3 play off each other high pnr - and given they're all excellent passers, that could look incredible. What a nightmare for defenses. But if we're getting killed in transition it will diminish a lot of that too. If the team commits to thinking faster in transition, who knows. That team has a super high iq.
Ha, i see a lot of different opinions on the subject and it doesn't surprise me since i'd be hesitant here...Capela is younger, cheaper and he has still some upside left, on the other hand Gasol is just on another level, better shooter (can shoot the 3 and he's a 83% ft shooter which is amazing for a center), passer, defender, super smart player...we're talking about a true all star. I think it would be really a hard call here, maybe, as today, i'm probably in this camp here, like YOLO. Even though, i would like to know what are really the chances we'll get Lebron or George next summer, because if Lebron is probably coming or we'll be able to make a run for George i'd say pass on Marc at this point, but if George is really hell-bent on going to the Lakers and we don't know **** on Lebron interest in coming here eh, i'm not sure i would pass Marc with CP3 here.
I love Clint Capela more than anyone and I would I hate to see him go, but If you can get Marc Gasol for him you do it, period.
Our transition defense would get better, not worse, imo. Our defense would be number 1 in the NBA with Marc Gasol. The dude is a paint protecting genius.
As said, the time has passed. Capela is getting better, Gasol is going in the other direction. I don’t know if it is even possible. But if you can have: Harden Lebron Paul Capela You have to do it.
You don't really lose much in rebounding with Gasol. Yes he gives up a bit (again) athletically in terms of length and up/down ability on the boards, but this guy is still a seasoned vet who knows positioning well and also provides a different dynamic in scoring ability and playmaking as well. https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/g/gasolma01.html https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/capelca01.html Here are their stats within the first 19 games of the season. Gasol's creativeness on the PnR with CP3 and Harden will help his shooting percentage even more than Capela's, who is currently at (whopping 67%). Obviously you downgrade a bit defensively but you upgrade even more by stretching the floor on the offensive end. AND THEN there's the FA tussle with Capela to come this offseason... who knows the game plan of guys like the Lakers,Nets, Bulls, or even MAVS with money to spare.
We're above cap now. You can't simply exchange Capela for Gasol, because their salary doesn't match. The simplest way to make this work is to trade Clint and Ryno for Gasol. But I don't think we'll be better doing this. We're giving up two starters for a declining all star that doesn't really fit our system. Gasol is an all around center, he can pass the ball and set screens very well, he can score in the low post, he is a solid defender. However, he isn't very efficient at scoring, he doesn't demand double teams like Boogie or Embiid, he doesn't run the floor or finish near the rim as well as Clint does, he can shoot threes but not nearly as good as Ryno. Our rotation will be short if we make this trade, I don't like it. Besides, I don't see Memphis taking this deal either. If they want to rebuild, they can trade Gasol for draft picks, young assets, or expiring contracts to clear some cap room. Anderson isn't really good for any team that wants to rebuild.
The problem is we need to trade Ryno as well(or maybe Ariza + EG which is even worse) to balance the salary. Our rotation will be short giving up two quality starters. Unless we can get a buy out Melo at Vet min, I don't see the Gasol trade working for us.
Clint's stock is very high (a little inflated IMHO) right now and I love Man Boobs Marc but I don't know if I'd trade Capela for him.
