Pau Gasol is 32 years of age, so it's natural for his production to start tailing off a bit as he heads into his mid-30s. Still, though the Los Angeles Lakers forward is a fine athlete overall that had some "in yo face"-moments during his first few seasons, Gasol's game was never predicated on jumping over other big men or streaking past helpless defenders. Because of his touch, length, and smarts Gasol figures to play capable and even All-Star level basketball at an age that most hit the skids at. That style of play hasn't hit thus far, in 2012-13. In fact, even after entering the season knowing that this had to be a bounce-back year for the former All-Star, Gasol has disappointed with his play in his 12th NBA season. And observers inside (one teammate, in the midst of an MVP-season, his head coach) and outside (this guy, watchin' his tee-vee) of the Lakers organization are wondering whether or not Gasol's conditioning might be a factor. From the Los Angeles Daily News : "Pau is used to laboring up the floor and coasting a little bit," Kobe Bryant said. "In this offense, we have to put the motor on the first few steps we move up the court."
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