Lakers’ Pau Gasol is not a big factor in Game 6
Reporting from Phoenix -- Pau Gasol frequently walked around the court with a scowl on his face, the look of a player disturbed by his inability to be a factor for the Lakers in Game 6 of the Western Conference finals against the Phoenix Suns.
Gasol was facing an aggressive, bruising power forward in Amare Stoudemire and he was not having his best night.
For Gasol, it’s only going to get tougher when he has to tangle with Boston’s defense-minded, intense forward Kevin Garnett when the NBA Finals start Thursday night at Staples Center.
But instead of hanging his head because things weren’t going his way or stop playing hard, Gasol stayed the course the best he could during the Lakers’ 111-103 victory over the Suns on Saturday night at US Airways Center.
In order for the Lakers to beat the Celtics and repeat as NBA champions, Gasol will have to be productive against Boston’s physical front line of Garnett, Kendrick Perkins and Rasheed Wallace.
Andrew Bynum, who didn’t play in the 2008 NBA Finals because of a left knee injury, said he is seriously thinking about having his right knee drained so he can be ready for the Celtics.
Bynum has been playing with a torn cartilage in his knee since the first-round series against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
He said the knee continues to have swelling.
“I’m going to think about it all day [Sunday],” said Bynum, who had 10 points and six rebounds against the Suns.
“Everybody said the draining helps. I think we have enough days in between before we play that it’ll be OK.”
When the Lakers faced the Celtics in the Finals in 2008, the Lakers lost in six games.
Many Lakers fans questioned Gasol’s toughness during that series.
He seemed to wilt under the pressure applied by Garnett.
Gasol was particularly poor in an unforgettable 131-92 defeat in the championship-deciding Game 6, finishing with only 11 points, eight rebounds and five turnovers.
That was two years ago.
Gasol played a major role in helping the Lakers beat the Orlando Magic in the 2009 NBA Finals.
He’ll be just as important against Boston.
Though the Lakers finished off the Suns in six games to advance to the franchise’s 31st Finals, Gasol was mostly ineffective in Game 6.
He had just nine points and seven rebounds. He was just two for nine from the field. He had five fouls and two turnovers in 41 minutes, 13 seconds.
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