Marc Gasol was never headed anywhere and apparently the notion was pretty much obvious since the start.
Gasol could have been one of the most sought after and busiest players during NBA free agency but as many perhaps know, most teams had plans but nothing solid really materialized.
The Lakers hinted that they would want to make a pitch to Gasol and so did the New York Knicks. But as soon as those rumors started to float, Gasol practically hit them one by one. Besides, after the last season, Gasol had already assured team owner Robert Pera that he would remain with the Grizzlies.
Hence it was only a matter of time before Gasol would officially re-sign and that is that.
The younger brother of Chicago Bulls' Pau Gasol never had any reason to bolt the Grizzlies camp, a place he technically calls home.
"Once the dust settled and I started thinking about the process of next season, every scenario would bring me back to Memphis," Gasol said via ESPN. "It never opened up to different teams. So, actually, it was pretty easy," he added.
The Grizzlies have been lingering in the Western Conference as potential contenders and could be missing out on minor tools to bump them into the NBA Finals scene.
The team has one of the deadly frontcourts the NBA has right now, seeing Gasol and Zach Randolph partnering to give opposing squads some rough roads as seen in previous seasons.
The duo is further complemented by one of the game's talented point guards in Mike Conley and the missing link/s may perhaps lie on players who can hit it from the outside.
Complementing the trio is the coming of NBA veteran Matt Barnes who can hopefully bring his rough brand of play to rub off on the rest of the team. Barnes can hit it from the outside but the Grizzlies could do better with a natural shooter to free up the inside for Gasol and Randolph.
