How the Gasol trade saved the Lakers' season

Last season, the Lakers got off to a surprisingly hot start, going 26-13 to establish themselves as a top four team in the West and darkhorse championship contender.

Then the wheels fell off.

Half the roster went down with lengthy injuries and the Lakers scraped their way into the playoffs, a beat up vehicle that was quickly beatdown by the superior Phoenix Suns.

The Lakers, mired in a dreary rebuilding project, had regressed. Kobe was booed. Mitch Kupchak was hated. Phil Jackson wasn't signing an extension. The franchise was on the verge of trading away it's last remaining remaining superstar.

Fast forward.

The Lakers are sitting atop the most stacked Western Conference in the history of the NBA. At 40-17 they have their best record since 2002, their last championship year. They are the favorites, in a conference loaded with nine teams winning more than 60% of their games, to win the championship.

The New Look Lakers are deeper than the Spurs and Mavs, have a better starting five than Detroit and Phoenix, a better big three than Boston, and the league's best player and best coach.

Injuries have slammed the Lakers once again, but the same doom that destroyed the team last season was quickly vanquished when Mitch Kupchak stole Pau Gasol from the salary cap shedding Grizzlies. Andrew Bynum is out and Kobe's pinky is hanging on by a tendon that doesn't exist anymore. But the Lakers are playing with a dominating team effort behind their new big man who runs the offense on the interior as efficiently as Bryant does on the perimeter.

Kobe has refused the recommended surgery, sensing that this team has a very real possibility of winning the championship right now. He'll gladly wear his fourth championship ring on his thumb this summer while his pinky recovers.

Gasol is a dream fit in the Phil Jackson's triangle. An intelligent big man who can catch, pass, and shoot. Pau is the anti-Kwame Brown. He fit's in flawlessly with the rest of the Lakers front line, leaving room for Andrew Bynum to operate in the paint by playing skillfully on the elbows. Odom handles the ball like a guard and will play on the perimeter. The biggest front line in the history of the NBA, with Bynum at 7-1, Gasol at 7-0, and Odom at 6-11, is also a meticulous blend of big man with complimentary skill sets.

Last year in February the Lakers went 5-7 and started March with a 7 game losing streak. This February they are 12-1, so good that after the Clippers were trumped by the Lakers, Coach Mike Dunleavy conceded if "you look at their schedule, you don't see them losing any more games." The next night the Lakers blew out the Sonics, and coach P.J. Carlisemo agreed; "It looks like this team's not gonna to lose a game the rest of the year."

Most important, the Gasol trade re-instilled faith. Kobe's faith in his teammates, in management, and even in deity, jubilantly proclaiming "There is a God! There is a God!" after Pau's first game with the Lakers, a 24 point (10-15 shooting), 12 rebound, 4 assist sign of things to come.

The Pau heist wasn't the first great move that Kupchak has made. He's drafted smartly from the late first round and second round, bringing in Vujacic, Turiaf, Farmar, and Walton. His one move that didn't stick (Brian Cook) was turned into Trevor Ariza, an athletic defender/slasher that we've been craving off the bench.

And the best move of all was not submitting to his superstar, or the majority of fans, or a knee-jerk reaction, and keeping Andrew Bynum, who is the future of the franchise and the franchise center for the next 15 years.

The city of Los Angeles cried when Shaq was traded for spare parts, but those parts have become Lamar Odom, Gasol (Caron Butler became Kwame Brown who became Pau), Farmar (draft pick from the trade) and Bynum (the Laker's lottery pick from their stinky post-Shaq season).

Dr. Buss made the correct decision. Yes, Shaq won a championship for Miami, but now we have a deep, solid, young team instead of a cap killing 36 year old $20 million role player.

Kobe will most likely be the league MVP this season. His team is on the inside track to the Finals where he'll be the Finals MVP. And he can do it several times over the next five years.

Yes Kobe, there is a wise, all-seeing man, taking care over you. His name is Mitch Kupchak, and he deserves your thanks for saving the Lakers season and giving you the opportunity of your career.