Day 63: Could Gasol be bound for Cleveland?

(Illustration courtesy of Mike Harrison/Nike)

So a crazy rumor has emerged. The L.A. Lakers might be interested in sending Pau Gasol to the Cleveland Cavaliers for the decaying carcass of Andrew Bynum, who the Lakers would then immediately waive -- which would allow them to save a boatload of money, and would keep Bynum from playing for them again, which he surely wouldn't want to do anyway, considering he probably loathes Kobe Bryant.

If Gasol went to Cleveland, he would get to play with an elite point guard for the first time in his career -- albeit one that isn't great at passing. Still, in a new city, on a new franchise where he wouldn't be double-teamed a lot, Gasol could reinvent himself. By now, it's pretty clear he and the Lakers have mutually concluded he'd be better served somewhere else. The Lakers have no chance of doing anything this season, so it makes sense for them to cut ties with Gasol and get something for him while they still can. And Gasol, weary from all the trade rumors and weary of Mike D'Antoni, who he's publicly criticized, might be one of the only players in the entire league who'd welcome a change from sunny Los Angeles to frigid Cleveland.

Now, will it happen? Who knows. The deal makes sense on paper, but there are enough other factors at play here -- like, what does Kobe think about all this? -- that it's possible this transaction never leaves the rumor mill. On the off chance that this deal does go down, Anderson Varejao would probably move back to the bench for the Cavaliers, which would once again render him an iffy fantasy option. Pau Gasol probably wouldn't go back to putting up the numbers he was a few years ago, but he'd still likely be a better player than he is right now. As for the Lakers, the removal of Gasol could very well elevate Chris Kaman into the starting center role, which would make him an extremely appetizing fantasy commodity. Yes, as odd as it is to say in a deal involving two premier centers, Chris Kaman would easily be the biggest winner of this hypothetical deal -- so keep him on your watch list, because on the off chance this deal does go down, he'll be a must-own player.

But enough about that. Let's talk about the Matrix, shall we?

• Shawn Marion turned back the clock on Monday, with the Mavs forward scoring 32 points on 14-19 shooting to go with 4 three's, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, a steal and a block. This is an unbelievably good moment to sell on him, because while he may have juice left in the tank and is still a serviceable fantasy contributor, what he did on Monday isn't at all indicative of the player he currently is. If you own him, this is a great opportunity to cash in.
• Jrue Holiday had likely his best game yet with the Pelicans, scoring 31 points and adding 13 assists, 7 rebounds, a steal and a block. He's been able to stay healthy and is having a terrific season as the only real option at point guard in New Orleans.
• Al-Farouq Aminu scored 9 points and pulled down 15 rebounds yesterday. He's not as enticing as he was a few weeks ago, when Anthony Davis was out and Ryan Anderson was still coming off the bench. But so long as he's getting playing time (and he played 40 minutes yesterday), Aminu isn't a horrible add if you need some rebounding.
• Still starting, Trevor Booker scored 6 points and added 5 rebounds in 22 minutes yesterday. The Wizards have been winning a lot lately, so it's possible they'll continue to have Booker start with Nene coming off the bench -- which would give Booker some deep-league appeal. But unless Nene is out of commission, Booker isn't going to get enough playing time to be that great of an add in standard leagues.
• After getting benched in the second half of his last game, Josh Smith started for the Pistons and put up 16 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals. As odd as the situation with his coach may be, he's still one of the most diverse stat-stuffers in fantasy basketball.
• Andre Drummond rebounded nicely from his 4-and-7 dud the other night, putting up 16 points and 16 rebounds against the Wizards. He's still an elite center.
• James Johnson continued to revitalize his career on Monday, with the bench forward producing 13 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 3 blocks for the Grizzlies. I'm somewhat skeptical that he's going to be this productive throughout the season, but even so, he definitely looks like someone who needs to be added in fantasy leagues right now.
• D.J. Augustin had yet another solid outing, this time scoring 10 points and adding 9 assists and 4 steals off the bench. Augustin has been a tremendous addition to the Bulls, after the Raptors more or less got tired of him. Augustin isn't a bad pickup right now, though he's been excelling lately with Kirk Hinrich either hurt or playing badly. Assuming Hinrich is able to right the ship, Augustin might not be as terrific a week or two from now.