Report: Marc Gasol Will Exercise Player Option, Return to Raptors

Marc Gasol will reportedly exercise his $25.6 million player option for next season and return to the Raptors instead of entering free agency.

Marc Gasol will exercise his $25.6 million player option for next season and return to the Raptors instead of entering free agency, reports ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Gasol helped Toronto win the NBA Finals after beating the Warriors in six games. With the title, Toronto earned its first championship in franchise history, and the Warriors fell short of the first three-peat since the Lakers in 2000-02.

This season, Gasol, 34, averaged 13.6 points, 7.9 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game between the Raptors and Grizzlies.

The Grizzlies traded Gasol, their franchise player, to the Raptors before the 2019 NBA trade deadline. Toronto sent Jonas Valanciunas, Delon Wright, CJ Milles and a 2024 second-round pick to Memphis in exchange for Gasol. He was drafted at No. 48 overall by the Lakers in the 2007 NBA draft before having his rights traded to the Grizzlies where he'd been until the 2019 trade.

Gasol is a two-time All-NBA Team member and three-time NBA All-Star, earning the NBA Defensive Player of the Year honor in 2013. Gasol who is from Spain has played for the Spanish national team. His older brother is Bucks center Pau Gasol.

You can get the Sports Illustrated commemorative cover of the Raptors title here.