Lakers News: Two-Time Champion to Have Jersey Retired by LA This Season

The former LA champion will finally get to see his jersey lifted up into the rafters.

The long-awaited moment that fans have been asking for has finally come to fruition as the Lakers announced today that they will be retiring Pau Gasol's number this upcoming season. His No. 16 will rise up into the rafters on March 7, 2023, to join fellow teammate Kobe Bryant and many other Lakers legends. 

That game will so happen to be against the Memphis Grizzlies, the team that drafted Gasol and where he played his first 6-plus seasons before putting on the purple and gold. 

A Champion, legend, and forever part of the Lakers Family.

3/7/23 - We raise Pau Gasol's jersey into the rafters pic.twitter.com/F9snGrHO9o

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) August 17, 2022

It was only a matter of time before it finally happened as Gasol helped carry the team along with the late Kobe Bryant to back-to-back titles between 2009-2010. They would've had the chance at a threepeat but thanks to Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks, that dream was crushed. His pairing with Bryant on the field during that run as well as his relationship with him and the team after his retirement has cemented him as an LA legend.

Before ultimately retiring from the sport altogether in 2021, Gasol played for the Grizzlies, Lakers, Chicago Bulls, San Antonio Spurs, and Milwaukee Bucks. During that time he was able to put together quite the resume with two NBA titles, a Rookie of the Year Award, four All-NBA selections, and six All-Star appearances. 

During his time in LA, Gasol averaged 17.7 points per game, with 9.9 rebounds, 2 blocks, 3.5 assists, and a .522 field goal percentage. 

It was only a matter of time but Gasol's No. 16 would one day be unavailable for anyone else.