National Basketball Association

Gasol can't even enjoy 'Lion King' without hearing trade rumors

Published Jan. 8, 2014 7:20 p.m. ET

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Sam Gardner

By now, Pau Gasol is probably used to the rumors that a trade from the Los Angeles Lakers is imminent, but it’s kind of sad that the poor guy still can’t even get through a performance of "The Lion King" without hearing that he’s been traded.

It may sound silly, but that’s exactly what happened, according to the Los Angeles Daily News, which reported that Gasol checked his Twitter during intermission of a performance of the play in Hollywood on Saturday to find that he had reportedly been dealt to the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for Andrew Bynum.

“I was getting all these messages, ‘Farewell, Pau. Thanks for all your services,’ all that stuff,” Gasol told the paper. “I guess it’s good to get a heads-up a day before. Most guys don’t get that.”

As it turned out, Gasol was not traded, and Bynum was later dealt to Chicago in exchange for Luol Deng. But Gasol realizes it’s probably not the last time he’ll hear his name discussed in the final few weeks before the NBA’s trade deadline.

“There will be other rumors and potential trades coming up, but I can’t really worry about it,” Gasol told the Daily News. “I just need to continue what I’ve been doing, which is come in and be ready to play. ... It feels good to survive and live to fight another day. I’d like to continue to be here. But that’s not up to me.”

As for the second act of the show?

“It was a really good musical,” Gasol said, according to ESPN LA. “I enjoyed it. I brought my parents and my little brother. It was a nice family time.”

Or, in the words of the immortal Pumbaa: “Hakuna matata.”

Now, for some links:

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• Want to watch the Heat sing karaoke? It’ll cost you $150.

• Indian athletes at the Winter Olympics will compete as independent athletes.

• No traveling?:

• Frank Thomas looks like a guy who was just elected to the Hall of Fame:

• The Cleveland Indians are getting rid of Chief Wahoo, kind of:

• The Pittsburgh Pirates are also ditching the jolly roger pirate from their logo.

• Former NBA player Richard Dumas was allegedly caught stealing $800 worth of stuff from an Air Force exchange store. [Insert “what a Dumas” joke here.]

• The Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl needs a new sponsor.

• Sean Payton had the Seahawks logo painted on the New Orleans Saints practice fields:

• Watch a Seahawks fan turn into the Hulk:

• Amanda Dufner went hiking in Maui. Her husband Jason — you may have heard of him — was also there:

• The NHL is the only league with a pro-LGBT advocate on each team.

• The NHL is also said to be selling out more arenas than the NBA this season.

• A Winnipeg hotel sent Steven Stamkos a cake to congratulate him on making the Canadian Olympic team.

• A Michigan State football player led the basketball crowd in a Daniel Bryan “Yes!” chant Tuesday:

• Luol Deng said goodbye to the Chicago Bulls on Instagram:

• A spectator won $100,000 for catching a six — a cricket “home run,” if you will — at a match in New Zealand:

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