Lakers to retire Pau Gasol’s jersey number in tribute to the player
On Wednesday, the Los Angeles Lakers announced the retirement of Pau Gasol’s number #16 jersey
The Los Angeles Lakers have had amazing players throughout their illustrious history, and some of them deserve a significant tribute from the franchise, but not all have received it. One of these is the Spanish center Pau Gasol, who helped Kobe Bryant become a 5x NBA champion by reaching the finals three times from 2008 to 2010.
Gasol’s jersey retirement didn’t come as a surprise. The Lakers announced their intention to honor the Spain international permanently by hanging his jersey in the rafters of Crypto.com Arena following his retirement in 2021. Then, in July, Gasol stated that the ceremony might take place as early as the 2022-23 season, per his discussions with the company and team owner Jeanie Buss.
The Lakers finally set Gasol’s jersey retirement. The team has scheduled the ceremony for March 7th, 2023. After it was made official, Gasol took to Twitter to share his reaction to the honor.
“Beyond thankful and honored!!!” The Spaniard wrote alongside the hashtag #LakersFamily. He also retweeted the Lakers’ announcement showing him wearing his no. 16 LA jersey.
Pua Gasol with the Lakers
Gasol was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers in the infamous Kwame Brown trade. He and Kobe Bryant made a great team from the start. The Black Mamba knew Gasol would be a great teammate, but he wanted to keep him in check from the start.
“From the very beginning he’s like, ‘Look, I’m very happy that you’re here. Let’s acknowledge that. I’m very excited you’re here, but now let’s go f***ing win a title. Let’s go win a title. Let’s go win this thing.”
In 429 games at Staples Center, he scored 17.7 points, grabbed 9.9 rebounds, and gave out 3.5 assists. In three NBA Finals, he won two titles.
Gasol deserves this honor, and there’s no better way to remember his legacy than to retire his Lakers jersey.