The buyout market brought the former Chicago Bulls power forward Pau Gasol from the San Antonio Spurs to the Milwaukee Bucks to start the month of March.
Only time will tell how much longer some of the older veterans big men in the NBA will last. The first name that comes to mind in that regard is the Dallas Mavericks Dirk Nowitzki. Beyond Dirk, other big men like Marc Gasol and Pau Gasol were both on the move this season and definitely seem to be in the latter years of their careers.
On March 1, Pau Gasol wound up landing with the Milwaukee Bucks after he was bought out by the San Antonio Spurs. He was one of the more potent, but also one of the riskier big men to acquire through the buyout market this season.
There was a plethora of veteran bigs and forwards on the buyout market this season. Following the 2019 NBA Trade Deadline, there was expected to be a pour-in of solid bigs that playoff contenders could haul in if need be. Even the Chicago Bulls came into play in that regard with the expectation that Robin Lopez would come to an agreement for a buyout.
Pau Gasol is planning to sign with the Milwaukee Bucks, league sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) March 1, 2019
As a former member of the Bulls from 2014-2016, Pau Gasol had some good years within the past five seasons in the Windy City. His production did decline pretty sharply this season as he’s averaging under five points per game in less than 27 games played thus far.
The addition of Gasol could still be big for the Bucks though as this team sits at the top of the Eastern Conference standings now. The East will be a hard fought battle in the later rounds of the playoffs, but the Bucks should be included at that point. Adding as many veteran voices in the locker room as possible to help out alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo is important.
Just a few years back, we were seeing Pau Gasol put together some nice campaigns with the Bulls. All in all, he averaged 17.6 points per game, 11.4 rebounds, and 3.4 assists during his two seasons in the Windy City. The Bulls are the only team to see Gasol average a double-double per game in his time with any team.
Gasol can still bring something valuable to the table for the Bucks this season. If he remains healthy, which he could not do this season in San Antonio, then we could see his player efficiency rating (above 18) get maximized as part of a deep playoff run.