When Marc Gasol strutted his newest, most transformative skill

On a night in LA, Marc Gasol showed off his newest skill, one that eventually led to his basketball immortality.

Prior to the 2016-17 season, newly-hired Memphis Grizzlies coach David Fizdale challenged Marc Gasol to become a more willing 3-point shooter, even setting a quota of 4 three-pointer’s per game. When that long-distance conversation struck in their first meeting that offseason, Gasol even laughed at the notion, as shooting 3’s was never in his job description. However, belief from Fizdale, his teammates, and the rest of the organization drove Gasol to the next evolution of his play style.

And it arguably became his most transformative enhancement to his game.

Marc Gasol showed off his newest, deeper bag on a big stage. It was a Wednesday night early in the season, as the Grizzlies traveled to Los Angeles to take on the Clippers for an ESPN showdown. The game had buzz. The Grizzlies and Clippers were the league’s most intense rivalry of the 2010’s. The Clippers started the season to red-hot 10-1 surge. The Grizzlies had a facelift around the Core 4 with new head coach David Fizdale, with and marquee free agent signing Chandler Parsons recently joining the lineup.

And prior to this game, Gasol was doing pretty well with the adjustment to the 3-ball — averaging 18.6 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 3.3 assists while shooting 34.3% from 3 (3.9 attempts per game) and 42.1% shooting overall. It was a modest leap, as roughly 25% of his shot attempts came from long distance. A nice ease into his expanded game.

Nonetheless, in this game, Marc Gasol emphatically arrived as a long-distance shooter, ushering in the evolution of his All-Star skillset.

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The 3-point shot enhanced Gasol’s game as a spacer. It trickled down to the rest of the system — amplifying his skillset, and giving his teammates room to operate as well.

In this pick-and-roll, Gasol catches the ball off the soft roll. He identifies Chandler Parsons generated a switch with Chris Paul defending him, leading to a post-up in an empty corner for the jumper. Gasol’s roll gravity opened up the floor in this action. DeAndre Jordan has to pay mind to Gasol as both a shooter and playmaker. In the process, Parsons has more spacing with an empty corner, while also not worrying about the 5-man helping over to double.

Gasol again pulls Jordan out to the perimeter. So when Mike Conley catches the screen from Zach Randolph, he has the spacing to turn the corner and dive to the basket with absent rim protection.

Many times in the “Grit ‘n’ Grind” era, Randolph was doubled in the post. Sometimes by Gasol’s man, who was typically defending nearby — either helping from the opposite block or near the free throw line. As the Grizzlies are operating with a Delay action, Gasol slings an entry pass to Randolph — who has the spacing of an empty corner to cook his former teammate, Marresse Speights. He has that entire right driving lane to work with, while possessing ample ground away from help defense, to touch his floater off the glass.

Gasol seeks the post-up with Randolph, but is unable to find it. He continues to survey the floor, then makes a move downhill. He flips the DHO to Vince Carter — as his man lost him on the back positioning to help with Randolph in the post — for the 3. It’s an opportunity that may not have opened up if he was slotted near the elbows or low block.

So now with his 3’s. Gasol hit 4 three’s in this game, the 2nd time that season (and in his career) he connected on that many triples.

The Grizzlies are deploy a HORNS-type action. As Randolph sets the ball screen, Blake Griffin is dropping until Paul recovers from the ball screen. Meanwhile, Jordan has to tag Randolph a bit on the roll, creating a clean look for Gasol.

Marc Gasol generated many of his 3’s as a “trailer” in early offense situations — in the 2016-17 season, he made 41% of his “trailer” 3’s (39 attempts), per Synergy Sports. It was the perfect opportunity to catch his man settling into the defense.

Gasol’s shooting made his pick-and-roll game with Mike Conley more dynamic. Conley could attack as a driver or as a shooter, and Gasol had options of short-rolling for the shot or extra pass, crashing all the way to the rim, or veering out to the 3-point line. They exploit Jordan in a high drop, as Gasol slips out to the top of the key for the triple.

So now the grand finale.

But first…

The domino that led to the iconic game-sealing triple was on the defensive end. Gasol defended the inbounds pass. He then crashed the corner and blew up the pass with a deflection and steal. It’s poetic how this staple of Gasol’s Grizzlies legacy was created through his defensive efforts.

James Ennis comes up to set a ghost screen for Mike Conley, creating the switch with JJ Redick — the mismatch he hunted. Conley turns the corner but retreats it for a new driving angle. As Conley gets downhill, DeAndre Jordan helps off Gasol to protect the rim with a “show and recover.”

But it wasn’t in time.

Gasol drills the corner 3 to lift the Grizzlies up ahead to a 2-point game and the win.

And then… the strut:

In this epic showdown, against a long-time foe, Marc Gasol showcased a deeper bag — adding a new skill that ultimately transformed his game on his way to immortality.

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Marc Gasol tweaked his game towards what lied ahead for the modern NBA — a league where systems predicated around spacing and more perimeter responsibilities for big men. And it amplified his game.

Probably the most important element to Gasol, it opened up more of the floor for his teammates to play to their strengths. That space created freedom of movement, which tapped into Gasol’s virtuoso playmaking. He had a new map with different angles for where he can drop dimes to his teammates. It’s no coincidence Gasol’s assist rate (assists per 36 minutes) was at its best during this style evolution.

Gasol always had feathery touch on long 2’s. Moving back just a step enhanced his shot quality, while also created a new way for him to dissect defensive coverages with the 5-man — separation gave him breathing room to either let it fly, or put the ball on the deck for a new advantage off the dribble. From 2016-17 to the end of his career (2020-21), Gasol was 4th among centers in 3’s made (419) — and connected on 37% of them, 9th among centers that attempted at least 3 three’s per game during that span.

These offensive enhancements were coupled with his masterful defense, one of the best back-line rim protectors of the past decade.

This role enhancement was paramount on his way to immortality. When he arrived to Toronto, his scoring load was diminished. However, he played to his strengths as a playmaker and shooter — averaging 5.6 assists per 36 minutes and connecting on 44.2% of his 3’s once he moved to Toronto, ahead of their title run.

Marc Gasol is a brilliant basketball mind, as his play style emulated art. His newest skill coupled with everything else he had in his bag became an integral component in his quest towards immortality.

And Gasol strutted off that new skill on that one night in LA.

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