Get your custom-made Marc Gasol New York Knicks jerseys now.
Or, you know, do the smart thing and wait eight to nine months, when you’ll actually know where Gasol is playing.
Impending cap space has the Knicks all aflutter about their future prospects. Not just in 2015, but 2016, when they will (probably) join the Kevin Durant sweepstakes, which they will (probably) lose. For now, though, they appear to have their sights set on Gasol, and his brother, Pau Gasol, doesn’t think him joining the Knicks in free agency this summer is a far-fetched concept.
Per the New York Post‘s Zach Braziller:
Pau, in town with the Bulls, his new team, said it is “possible” his 29-year-old brother could wind up in New York and mentioned he has talked to Marc about Knicks president Phil Jackson in the past.
“We’ll see what happens next year, what he decides. Hopefully he’ll have a strong year and all the options in the world, because he’s one of the top centers, interior players in the league, so any team would be fortunate to have him,” the 34-year-old Spaniard said of his younger brother, before the Bulls demolished the Knicks, 104-80, Wednesday night at the Garden. “It’s a personal decision. I talked to my brother enough about Phil that he knows what he brings to the table.
“I don’t know how much he’s involved in the team, really. He’s in an upstairs position, management position. He’s not on the court every day, so it’s something that [his brother will] consider when he gets to that point.”
Welllllll then.
It’s not stupid to believe the Knicks will be a possibility for Marc. He’s never played in a market like New York, and he knows Pau has two rings to his name largely because of Phil Jackson. Marc is also a perfect fit for the uber-outdated—as in too many freaking mid-range jumpers—triangle offense the Knicks are trying to implement. He’s a better playmaker and scorer than any of the big men they have now. So the Knicks’ interest makes sense, and it’s possible it’s reciprocated this coming summer.
That doesn’t mean it will be, of course. You have to believe the Memphis Grizzlies have the inside track on re-signing him. There will be plenty of other teams with cap space as well.
Price will also come into play if Jackson and the Knicks are, in fact, trying to add two more superstars/make themselves available to Durant in 2016. Signing Gasol to a max deal could preclude the Knicks from making a run at another star, even with the projected cap explosion in mind.
Investing four years and tens of millions of dollars in a center on the wrong side of 30 is always risky business, too. Big men’s games don’t typically age well. Pau has done alright for himself, but even he’s battled foot injuries these last couple years. The Knicks might not fully break open their piggy bank for Marc if that’s a concern. Or maybe they will.
Who knows?
Jackson, on some level, probably does.
The rest of us will just have to wait and see.
Dan Favale is a firm believer in the three-pointer as well as the notion that defense doesn’t always win championships. His musings can be found at Bleacherreport.com in addition to TheHoopDoctors.com.
