Pau Gasol, 40, would play for Barcelona until the end of the season, they confirmed ESPN Sports sources close to the Barça club, from which the operation was not denied, with the aim of accelerating its set-up to the Tokyo Olympics. Gasol himself assured in his social networks that he still would not return to court.
The Catalan power forward has been away from court since May 10, 2019 due to a broken left foot.
After the news, I want to share that I will continue to focus on my recovery and that I am not ready to get back on track. If I have something to report, I do it through my social networks.
Thank you very much for your support!
– Pau Gasol (@paugasol) February 20, 2021
The signing of Gasol by Barça, to which the player has offered himself directly, is awaiting a medical examination, to be carried out shortly, before it will be under the command of Sharunas Jasikevicius, coach of the Barça team and with whom he already shared a Barça. locker room in the 2000-01 season, before making the jump to the NBA.
His contract until the end of the course would have negligible financial costs for the club.
At Barça, Gasol will also meet Montenegrin Nikola Mirotic, who was a teammate in the Chicago Bulls between 2014 and 2016 and in the Milwaukee Bucks in 2019.
The Catalan, who is considered the best player in Spain’s history, was cut off by the Portland Trail Blazers in November 2019, four months after his signing, due to problems with his recovery from his injury, which has left him inactive ever since.
Gasol made his professional debut in 1999 with Barça and rose to fame until the end of the 2000-01 season, when he was selected by the Atlanta Hawks at number 3 in the 2001 draft (behind Kwame Brown and Tyson Chandler). are immediately traded to the Memphis Grizzlies.
Champion of the league and cup with Barcelona in the first stage, with his signing the club Barça strengthens its position with the clear aim of strengthening its candidacy for the Euroleague title, the only title missing at club level from the list of a Gasol.
In 2009 and 2010, he captured the NBA ring with the Los Angeles Lakers. In addition, he was declared world champion with the Spanish team in 2006 and Europe in 2009, 2011 and 2015. At the Olympic Games he won the silver medal in 2008 and 2012 and the bronze medal in 2016.