Pau Gasol's Rebounding is Overrated

When dissected properly, Pau Gasol‘s rebounding statistics aren’t as impressive as they seem at first glance.

Chicago Bulls big man Pau Gasol was one of the most overrated defensive rebounders in the NBA last season.

This statement seems outrageous at first glance, as Gasol averaged 8.9 defensive rebounds per game last season, which was the fourth-most among all NBA players.

However, when the numbers get examined more closely, the lofty rebounding totals become tainted with mediocrity.

According to NBA.com, 6.8 of Gasol’s 8.9 defensive rebounds per game were uncontested, meaning that a defender wasn’t within a 3.5 foot radius of him when he grabbed the rebound. In other words, over 76 percent of his defensive rebounds last season were gimmes.

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Also, according to NBA.com, Gasol collected 22.6 percent of contested defensive rebound opportunities. This put him 36th among centers that played at least 20 minutes per game last season. Contested defensive rebounding percentage measures the percentage of 50-50 rebound chances that a player secures compared to the number that an opponent secures.

For reference, Joakim Noah, bad knee and all, led the NBA last season in this category by grabbing 35.1 percent of contested rebound opportunities. An unnamed writer for Stats-Insight.com summed up Gasol’s rebounding role on the Bulls in a February article (hence some of the stat discrepancies).

"It’s clear Gasol isn’t quite fighting off the opposition to clean the glass. That dirty work is left for fellow big man and reigning Defensive Player of the Year Joakim Noah, the only top-15 rebounder who averages more contested rebounds than uncontested boards. Gasol is getting a majority of his rebounds by simply grabbing the ball when no one else is around, averaging 7.7 uncontested rebounds."

Furthermore, the Bulls seemed to benefit in the rebounding department when Gasol wasn’t playing, even though he was the best rebounder on the team statistically.

According to Basketball-Reference.com, the total number of defensive rebounds the Bulls grabbed when Gasol was on the court was three percentage points lower than when he played.

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Why isn’t Gasol as good of a defensive rebounder as his numbers would seem to show?

According to The Athletic Chicago writer Stephen Noh, part of Gasol’s problem was he didn’t use his seven-foot, 250-pound frame to his advantage.

"The problem is that Gasol struggles a lot against bigger centers to box out defensively. Gasol isn’t the strongest center in the league. He’s listed at 250 pounds but I have serious doubts about that. He generally depends on his height advantage to grab boards, but when guys muscle him in the paint he can get into big trouble."

The previously mentioned Stats-Insight.com piece also offered another explanation for why Gasol’s defensive rebounding statistics last season were misleading.

"Part of the reason Gasol gets more uncontested rebounds near the basket than his contemporaries is because isn’t exactly an intimidating defender. Opposing teams are taking plenty of shots at Gasol near the rim, giving him plenty of opportunities to grab gimmes. Sure, rebounds come from missed shots and missed shots can come from good defense, but in the case of Gasol, the number of shots opponents take at the rim against him is so much greater than those taken against any of the other top rebounders that some freebies are inevitable."

Whether Gasol’s poor rebounding resulted from the above reasons or is a result of a simple lack of effort, the fact remains that his rebounding stats are misleading. These rebounding issues add fuel to the fire for those who think that the Chicago Bulls front office should let Gasol walk this summer.

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The 35-year-old veteran big man has said it is “very likely” he will decline the player option on the third year of his $22,346,280 contract. In this scenario, he would become an unrestricted free agent this summer.

Chicago Bulls general manager Gar Forman said as early as February that re-signing Gasol would be a priority this offseason.

“We really like Pau. We were thrilled when he came,” Forman said, via the Chicago Tribune‘s K.C. Johnson back in February. “We think he has been very good for us these last two years. We see him as a part of our core.”

Obviously, overpaying to retain a 35-year-old is a ludicrous proposition. Gasol is lazy on defense, he doesn’t fit Hoiberg’s offensive scheme, and he is injury prone at his advanced age.

His misleading rebounding statistics serve as another chink in the armor of the once valuable Gasol.

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If the Bulls front office tries to re-sign him this offseason, that would be a horrible mistake.

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Pau Gasol is an Overrated Defensive Rebounder

By Paul Steeno | Jun 3, 2016

When dissected properly, Pau Gasol‘s rebounding statistics aren’t as impressive as they seem at first glance.

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