We all have our opinion about Vecsey, but in this instance, I think he might be right. I always thought Gasol's alleged softness is rather overblown, and sometime people forget he's a great basketball player. I think Gasol gets a bad rap mostly because he looks like this: Yes, KG rendered him fairly ineffective, but that's Kevin Garnett there, probably the NBA's finest defender. Not like people have more success against KG if they do this more: To me, "softness" means you don't play D, avoid contact and try to look pretty rather than be effective. Is Gasol really any of that? http://www.nypost.com/seven/0531200...ng_it_done_without_the_sho_171846.htm?&page=0
I don't know why Vecsey is making a comparison between Gasol and Martin in terms of softness. Martin is a thug and not exactly a measuring stick for what others should be. Gasol's rap for softness comes from disappearing in big games, his pissing and moaning and flopping on the offensive end when things don't go his way, and his difficulty in handling more physical defenders. It's not about how he acts after he scores baskets or if he plays dirty or not that determines if he's soft or not, it's his performance and demeanor in handling adversity. Gasol is exceptionally talented as a big man, plays very effective and smart, but for some reason or other does not always play up to his size. This is also what many accused Yao of being guilty of (and likewise attached the soft label to him as well).
I think most people consider physically weak big men soft. When Pau plays center he gets pushed out of position too easily and MUST use his superior touch and jumpshot to score. This is different from a player like Dwight Howard (commonly considered tough) who has very little offensive game yet manages to score alot on a high percentage. It seems that it's usually a strength and balance issue. Personally, I'm more inclined to consider big men who don't try on defense, hustle for rebounds, or bang inside to be soft. Pau does everyone of these to the best of his physical abilities. That's more than I can say for guys like Zach Randolph, Dirk Nowitzki, Lamarcus Aldridge, or Amare Stoudemire.
*ding* *ding* We have a winner. If Gasol or Bynum were truly dominant big men (like a Duncan or Mourning), they would've easily finished off the Rockets and Nuggets. But, they're not as it stands. So why expect them to be that? For one, Gasol is not the type of player (ever was or ever will be), who can shut down the paint or deter drivers away from the basket, very often. I've seen too often in playoffs where opposing teams' eyes have lighten up when they saw him in the paint. This is the biggest difference between him and Yao, teams do not fear (or respect him) the same way, which goes beyond produciton.
I've always thought Gasol is just Dirk with better post moves and less range. Not a bad thing. If you could combine both of them you would have the ultimate big man. Great post moves and can still shoot the three, that would be so sick. Overall Gasol is slightly tougher than Dirk imho and I don't mean in terms of how they perform in big games but how they play when confronted by opponents that play actual tough D.
Gasol is pretty mentally tough, but his game is based on finesse, and not dunking over people. You can think about Yao in the same situation. We all branded him as soft until he showed up big time in this year's playoffs. Gasol on the other hand has to prove that teams can depend on him in the playoffs. The Houston series hurt his reputation as a go-to big man, but he has recovered in the Denver series. I think Dwight Howard will eat his lunch though. Btw, "That's what she said" for the thread title
he is soft. He does not impose his will on either end of the court. Physical defenders shut him down most nights, some nights he doesn't even show up, he'd far rather spend the night shooting from the high post than banging in the blocks. On defense, he's an absolute creampuff playing matador defense most times a player slashes to the rim.
Pau often doesn't hustle for rebounds or play tough D. Look at the Rockets series. He was caught on tape standing around watching and being lazy waiting for a rebound instead of running out trying to cover his man.
I'm still waiting to see the game where he keeps his intensity above 80% for more than two quarters in a row.
If Gasol plays "tough", he may not be as effective as he is on offense, but he would do better on the defensive end. With his height and athleticism, there is no reason why he can't be a defensive stopper.
