Lakers trade Marc Gasol to Memphis Grizzlies, (he) will reportedly be waived.

Gasol, 36, will look to complete his career in his native Spain after reportedly
agreeing to a buyout with the Grizzlies.

The Los Angeles Lakers traded Marc Gasol back to the Memphis Grizzlies in a deal
two teams announced on Friday. Memphis will then seek to waive the veteran center
so he can remain in his native Spain, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported.

The Lakers also sent a 2024 second-round pick and money to the Grizzlies in exchange
for the draft rights to Chinese center Wang Zhelin, the 57th pick in the 2016 draft
and a former domestic MVP in the Chinese Basketball Association.

Gasol’s role for the upcoming season looked increasingly tenuous this summer after
the Lakers signed centers Dwight Howard and DeAndre Jordan, who officially returned
to Los Angeles on Thursday. The Lakers also weren’t even certain Gasol wanted to return
for another NBA season, prompting them to stock up on big men.

However briefly, Gasol returns to the team he spent the first 10-plus seasons of his
NBA career, earning three All-Star nods and helping the Grizzlies make seven straight
playoff appearances before he was traded to Toronto midway through the 2018-19 campaign.

Gasol helped the Raptors win the championship that season before signing with the Lakers
as a free agent in 2020. He averaged 5.0 points and 4.1 rebounds last season as the Lakers
were eliminated in the first round, precipitating a major overhaul that has seen them add,
among others, Dwight Howard and DeAndre Jordan.

Gasol, 36, boasts averages of 14.0 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists in nearly 900
regular season games.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Per Woj:
The Lakers have agreed to trade Marc Gasol, a 2024 second-round pick and cash to the
Grizzlies for the draft rights to Wang Zhelin, sources tell ESPN. Deal saves Lakers
$10M. Gasol and Grizzlies will work together on waiver and release to allow him to
remain in Spain w/ family.

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FanNation:

Getting to know a little about the Lakers newest acquisition via the Marc Gasol trade
AJ Gonzalez 11 hours ago

Currently, Wang Zhelin is a player for the Fujian Sturgeons in the Chinese Basketball
Association. He's a 7-footer weighing in at 270, and was actually originally drafted by
the Grizzlies in 2016 in the second round.

Zhelin does have some NBA style experience. He played in the 2018 NBA summer league as
a member of the China men's national basketball team. He played in only a few games.

In the CBA (Chinese Basketball Association) Wang Zhelin won the 2019 MVP. He's also a
four-time CBA All-Star and was the 2013 CBA Rookie of the Year. His best overall year
was his MVP year where he averaged 25.7 PPG, 13.9 RPG, and 2.3 APG in 46 games for the
Fujian Sturgeons. Here are some highlights from a game where he dropped a casual 51
points and 13 rebounds.

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Lakers expected to pick up DeAndre Jordan when he gets waived.