Pau Gasol signs with Chicago Bulls

Gasol may not be the player he once was, and he isn’t likely to be named All-NBA second team again anytime soon, but the veteran is still a very effective player. The 34-year-old averaged 17.4 points and 9.7 rebounds in 60 games for the Lakers last season. He wasn’t as efficient offensively as he was earlier in his career, but his numbers are not far off from his career averages. Is he still a top-two player on a championship-caliber team? Probably not, but he still has more than enough game as a third or fourth piece. Gasol remains a very good passer and capable of running the offense out of the post. While his defensive legs have begun to fail him in pick-and-roll coverage, he’s still a strong paint protector who averaged 1.5 blocks per game in his 60 outings last season.

Could Anthony and Gasol be a package deal in New York, Los Angeles or somewhere else? Let’s take a closer look and the possibility.

Bryant will be a key part of the Lakers’ pitch to Anthony, and he flew back to Los Angeles from a European vacation on Wednesday night.

The Bulls met with Anthony for nine hours on Tuesday, and everything seemed to go swimmingly. However, there have been some signs that Chicago is feeling pessimistic about its chances:

The Oklahoma City Thunder are not generally the kind of team that makes big free-agent splashes, but a report from Marc Stein suggests they’ve reached out to both Pau Gasol and Mike Miller:

More surprisingly, ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne suggests they have become the frontrunner for Gasol’s services, with several other teams, including the Bulls, in pursuit.

After making more than $19 million last season with the Lakers, Gasol will make much less annually on his next contract. While the big man averaged 17.4 points and 9.7 rebounds last season, he’s getting up there in age and has dealt with injury problems for several years. There also has been some major slippage on the defensive end.

Chicago could have a significant amount of cap space to offer Gasol if they miss out on bigger targets, including Carmelo Anthony. The Bulls have been linked to Gasol in the past, but nothing has ever come to fruition.