The never ending saga.....From NBA.com
No. 1: Report: Suns halt Pau trade talks; Gasol needs more time to heal up– For now, it seems, the Pau Gasol-to-Phoenix trade is off the table. The Los Angeles Lakers big man had a hot topic of late as interest in a trade between the two teams heated up over the last few days. However, according to Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times, the Suns are pulling out of the deal because they feel the Lakers are asking too much for Gasol:
The Phoenix Suns have stopped talks to acquire Pau Gasol because they feel the Lakers want too much for the veteran post player, according to a person familiar with the situation.
Phoenix could own four picks in the June draft, and the Lakers coveted one of the more valuable two — the pick the Suns could potentially get from Minnesota or the one they might receive from Washington.
Both of those picks are protected and will revert back to Washington and Minnesota if they stumble. The Wizards’ pick is top-12 protected, so the Suns technically own it at this point (17th overall before Tuesday’s games), while the Timberwolves’ pick is top-13 protected, meaning Minnesota holds it right now (12th overall before Tuesday).
Phoenix also has its own pick (22nd overall as of Tuesday afternoon) and Indiana’s pick (currently 30th) in the draft, which is considered one of the best in years.
The talks could, of course, resume before the Feb. 20 trade deadline but the Lakers were reluctant to deal Gasol without receiving what they felt was adequate compensation.
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Gasol is currently sidelined about two weeks because of a strained groin, Lakers Coach Mike D’Antoni said Tuesday. Gasol received a platelet-rich plasma injection Monday to help the healing process.
That healing process may take a little longer than expected, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com, who says Gasol could miss two more weeks:
The Los Angeles Lakers extended the expected return timeline for injured forward Pau Gasol on Tuesday. Gasol, who received a PRP injection to his strained right groin from Dr. Steven Yoon in Los Angeles on Monday, will now be sidelined at least two weeks, according to the team.
Gasol, originally expected to miss one week after aggravating his groin in the Lakers’ 110-100 loss to the Charlotte Bobcats last week, did not accompany the Lakers on their three-game road trip through Minnesota, Cleveland and Philadelphia. He will now miss an additional three games at least — at home against Chicago, Utah and Oklahoma City — before being re-evaluated sometime during All-Star weekend.
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The Lakers and Phoenix Suns are currently entrenched in trade talks involving Gasol, according to ESPN.com. The Suns have expressed concern with Gasol’s health, according to ESPN.com’s Ramona Shelburne. The Lakers have one game between the All-Star break and the league’s Feb. 20 trade deadline, at home against the Houston Rockets on Feb. 19, so if cleared, Gasol could theoretically prove his condition level in time for a deal to still be facilitated.