A Gasol reunion on the Lakers? Marc says Pau has a ways to go

In a perfect world, the brothers who were once traded for one another might still wind up on the same NBA team.

But Marc Gasol doesn’t sound sold that his older brother Pau is definitely ready for a Lakers comeback.

The 35-year-old has been practicing with the Lakers for a week now, and Marc Gasol is more concerned with fitting in with his new team than worrying about whether his 40-year-old brother could come back with the Lakers, who might be able to fill their remaining roster spot later in the season. But even if they could add Pau, who was Kobe Bryant’s co-star during the 2009 and 2010 title runs, it’s unclear if he’s ready to play in what would be his 19th NBA season after missing much of the last two seasons with a left foot injury.

“I think he has to find a way to play a little bit, to see how his body reacts to that,” Marc Gasol said Thursday. “And I think that should be the main focus right now, instead of where he is going to play.”

In an interview with ESPN this week, Pau Gasol acknowledged he would like to play for the Lakers again. His last seven-season stint in Los Angeles ended in 2014, but with Marc on the roster, there’s fresh motivation. But he’s still conditioning in Northern California, where he acknowledged his access to training partners is limited during the pandemic.

“It would be very special, and now that my brother is there, even more special,” he told ESPN. “But I’m not in a position now to be very demanding.”

Marc Gasol said his familiarity with the Lakers and Los Angeles started with his brother, who invited him to attend playoff series during the Lakers’ late-aughts heyday. He’s looking forward to seeing his niece, Elisabet Gianna Gasol (the middle name in honor of Bryant’s late daughter), who he hasn’t met since she was born three months ago: “The situation that we’re in now, everything is pretty limited.”

While the two have never been NBA teammates, Marc and Pau have been stalwarts of the Spanish national team for years. Pau told ESPN he wants to go play for a team – not just take up a roster spot. That calling, Marc admitted, will be tough, but he knows that if nothing else, Pau has taken a potential path back to the NBA seriously.

“He’s been rehabbing the whole time,” he said. “I know he’s very dedicated to it. It means a lot to him to get this right. But it’s not the end of the world if that’s not the case.”

Marc could make his Lakers debut on Friday night against the Clippers, a game in which the team has already said All-Stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis won’t play. Gasol said he’s still adjusting, but so far he’s appreciated the speed at which the Lakers play and run transition, and the communication James has in practice. While he acknowledged his role is “fluid,” he indicated that he believes he’ll fall in quickly with the returning players.

“Obviously they’re very talented,” he said. “Everyone knows their role. A very deep team. Very good coaching staff. I mean, what else do you want me to say? They’re the champions.”

QUINN COOK BACK IN THE FOLD

The Lakers’ final move before camp opened this weekend was a squeaker: They re-signed guard Quinn Cook to a minimum deal, adding one of the team’s most amenable locker room presences back to the group.

It was a journey, Cook admitted: He was in the wind for two weeks after the Lakers waived his contract before free agency to create salary cap room. Cook said the Lakers told him they would make the move and handled it “the most professional way.” After signing back with the Lakers on Friday, he had to pass six days of COVID-19 testing protocol before he could join the team in the practice facility, which Cook acknowledged was his first full team practice in El Segundo since March.

“It was just a great feeling to be back and felt like I hadn’t seen my guys in so long, even though we’ve been talking every day, so to put this jersey back on, to be back with this staff, organization, man, is a beautiful feeling.”

The 27-year-old Washington D.C. native was a bit player last season, playing just 44 games and averaging 5.1 points. He played in just six of the team’s 21 playoff outings.

But Cook is well-liked throughout the league and in the Lakers’ locker room, a friend of James (who said he hoped Cook would be back) and Davis. Wesley Matthews mentioned his excitement for Cook to be coming back (the two were teammates in Dallas) and Cook also briefly overlapped with Dennis Schröder in Atlanta. He and Alfonzo McKinnie (who has yet to report to camp with an excused absence) were teammates with Golden State.

Cook said when he walked in the gym Thursday morning, teammates gave him a playful ovation. A lifelong Lakers fan, Cook said he hopes to find more time on the court this season.

“Last year was very motivating for me, just to see what it takes to be great in this league, seeing Rondo and LeBron on an everyday basis at that point guard spot,” he said. “I thought I worked hard, I thought was doing a lot, but I have to take myself to another level.”

In this March 18, 2017 file photo, the San Antonio Spurs’ Pau Gasol, right, greets his brother, Memphis Grizzlies Marc Gasol, as the two get ready to play against each other in Memphis, Tenn. Marc is now with the Lakers, who Pau played with for seven seasons and won two NBA titles. (AP Photo/Karen Pulfer Focht, file)