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Pau Gasol is undoubtedly one of the NBA's greatest-ever European players. The former Los Angeles Lakers big man won two championships during his time in the league and also made history on the European basketball scene.
Here are Pau Gasol's top-five career moments:
#1 Pau Gasol becomes EuroBasket All-Time leading scorer
In 2017, Pau Gasol made history by becoming the all-time leading scorer in the EuroBasket competition. Gasol overtook Tony Parker for the prestigious honor during a game against Hungary, where he drained a 3-point jumper to score the 1,105th point of his EuroBasket career.
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Pau Gasol was among the early adopters of big men who could work on the perimeter and is among the greatest basketball player in Spain's history.
#2 Pau Gasol's first NBA Championship
In the 2008-2009 season, Pau Gasol helped lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a championship - the first of his NBA career. Gasol started all 23 of the Lakers' playoff games that year and averaged a double-double in points and rebounds, with 18.3 buckets per game and 10.8 boards.
Pau Gasol was an iron man for the Los Angeles Lakers that year, as he also competed in 81 regular-season games, taking his total tally of games played to 104 in a single season.
#3 Pau Gasol makes Los Angeles Lakers debut
On February 1, 2008, Pau Gasol made his first appearance for the Los Angeles Lakers following his trade from the Memphis Grizzlies.
The deal that saw the purple and gold acquire Gasol saw Kwame Brown, Aaron McKie, Javaris Crittenton and the rights to Marc Gasol head to Memphis in a move that reshaped the Los Angeles Lakers roster and led to two championships.
#4 Pau Gasol wins FIBA World Championship & is named MVP
In 2006, Pau Gasol was the leader of a Spanish national team that won the FIBA World Championship. During the tournament, Gasol's dominance led to him being named the MVP in what was another historical showing from one of Europe's greatest-ever basketball exports.
Pau Gasol also won an MVP award for Spain's 2016 EuroBasket performance, which helped Spain qualify for the 2016 Olympics.
#5 Pau Gasol's monster Game 7 performance in 2010
Pau Gasol helped the Los Angeles Lakers avenge their 2008 NBA Finals loss to the Boston Celtics in 2010, specifically with a monster double-double performance in Game 7.
Gasol ended the contest with 19 points and 18 rebounds while also securing an offensive rebound late in the fourth quarter that saw Rasheed Wallace ejected from the game due to fouling out.
The 2010 championship was the second of Pau Gasol's career. The duo of Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol was too much for the Celtics to handle, and their performances in that NBA Finals series will go down in Los Angeles Lakers history.
