Los Angeles Lakers: Is Pau Gasol The Best Power Forward In The League Right Now

Pau Gasol of the Los Angeles Lakers is still one of the best power forwards in the league.(NBA.com photo)

A lot of things went wrong for the Los Angeles Lakers this season, one of which was roughly the entire year of All-Star power forward Pau Gasol. At the beginning of the year, he was playing well below his usual level, missing shots that he normally hit like clockwork and struggling to be the major offensive presence he has been throughout his career. Then, just when it looked like he was about to turn things around, he suffered an injury that limited his playing time considerably, as he wound up playing in just 49 games this season. There was also that time when he was coming off the bench for Earl Clark.

But while it’s been trying season for Pau Gasol, he’s been slowly but surely turning things around. In the final game of the regular season against the Houston Rockets, Gasol played brilliantly, getting himself a triple-double and leading his team to a key victory. Because of Gasol’s performance, the Lakers were able to get the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference, getting a matchup against the banged-up San Antonio Spurs instead of the much tougher Oklahoma City Thunder. If the Lakers wind up advancing to second round, Gasol’s performance against Houston will have been one of the key factors that got them there.

Gasol continued his hot stretch in Game 1 against the Spurs. While it was in a losing effort, Gasol was still impressive as he put in 16 points, 16 rebounds and six assists. His improved passing has been huge for the Lakers recently. With Kobe Bryant out and Steve Nash not being the passer he once was, someone has needed to fill the stat sheet in the assist department and lately, that’s been Gasol. He’s always been one of the best passing big men in the league, but recently he’s taken it to a higher level, setting up teammates for key plays left and right. Without Kobe around, there are a lot of players who can’t create their own shot. Pau’s excellent distribution has mitigated that problem considerably.

When looking at all these factors, it’s worth considering whether or not Gasol is the best power forward in the NBA right now. That might seem like an odd thing to say about a player coming off one of his worst seasons as a pro, but keep in mind, Gasol struggled with injury problems all year. This current stretch might be the first time in awhile where he’s been completely healthy. Now that we are seeing the full complement of Gasol’s skill set, it hardly seems crazy to think he might be the best in the league at what he does.

In a technical sense, we could argue that LeBron James is the best power forward in the league and perhaps Carmelo Anthony is the second, but they are both usually small forwards who have simply adapted to playing the 4 because it suits their teams’ needs at the moment. Gasol is more of a true 4 (although he has been known to play center) and in that category, not many other players are on his level. Zach Randolph‘s play has tapered off after an excellent start, while LaMarcus Aldridge put up great numbers on a bad team. Dirk Nowitzki appears to have gotten his groove back, but I’d like to see him play at his current level for a bit longer before I make any firm judgments about that, especially considering he’ll be 35 this year.

Blake Griffin had a strong season on an excellent Clippers team and right now, he’s probably the only true power forward I would definitively put ahead of Pau. He’s shooting a little bit bette, and while his assists are slightly behind Gasol’s, he has proven himself to be a solid passer and he could improve in that category in time. Still, Pau Gasol has proven that his struggles this season were a fluke and he is still one of the best at what he does in the game.