LOS ANGELES — Pau Gasol has been called many things in his career: NBA champion, four-time All-Star, one of Europe's best players. But one of the monikers the native of Barcelona, Spain, has heard much too often — especially during this tumultuous season — has a hugely negative meaning when it refers to a 7-foot, 250-pound power forward:
Soft.
In his past seven games, however, the personable Spaniard has struck back at his critics, turning into a physical force on offense, defense and the boards.
It continued Tuesday night at Staples Center as Gasol posted 20 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to an 86-78 win over the Atlanta Hawks. In his past seven appearances — six on the road — he's averaged 18.6 points, 14 rebounds and 1.7 blocks. He put together a 25-point, 14-rebound game in Boston and a 16-point, 17-board game against Toronto, both wins for the Lakers (17-12).
Gasol, who had double-doubles in all seven of those games, said, "I'm just trying to be more aggressive out there; more energetic out there. You know, just produce any way that I can.
"My rebounding has been good, and I've been knocking down the open-look shots that I've been getting lately." (That included a long 3-pointer, his first of the season at Staples.)
Coming off a six-game road trip, it wasn't easy the first night playing at home.
"Your body doesn't feel the usual when you come back from that kind of trip," he pointed out. "With the time difference and everything, it takes a game to get back to normal. But we fought throughout, we pushed ourselves and we found a way to win against a very quality team."
It was another outstanding defensive effort for the Lakers, who held the Hawks (18-11) to a 27 points in the second and third quarters combined.
"We're a very good defensive team," said Kobe Bryant, who had an off night offensively, scoring just 10 points on 5-for-18 shooting. We're one of the tops in the league. Obviously we're at home, where our momentum can carry us a little bit.
"We were able to get some steals and some defensive rebounds and turn them into easy points. It's been very tough for us to get those easy baskets."
Bryant also had praise for backup point guard Steve Blake, who ran the team brilliantly, scoring five points and handing out six assists in his 29 minutes of play.
"He's a point guard through and through," Bryant said. "With him out (for 13 games with a rib cage injury), we had guys playing out of position. Him coming back gives a little more stability to our lineup."
Andrew Bynum had 15 points and 15 rebounds and rookie guard Andrew Goudelock contributed 10 points in just 13 minutes played.
But it was the continuing gritty play of Gasol, who is not an All-Star for the first time since 2008, that pushed the Lakers to victory.
"We played a good game at some points; at other times not so good," he said. "And I'm glad I was able to have an effect on the outcome.
"We got good performances from a lot of the guys, and that's important. But we've got to get more consistent and play the same way throughout every game. We need to give the maximum effort on both ends of the floor, and then we can be the type of team we want to be."
The Lakers have some obvious shortcomings at the point-guard position — lack of speed and long runs of inconsistent play. There has been talk about the Lakers bringing in Gilbert Arenas to strengthen the backcourt, but Gasol isn't sure that's necessary.
"I don't have any say about what they do upstairs," Gasol said with a smile. "But as I've said, if they can get a player that will help us get better, I'm fine with that. As a player, your mindset is to just work with what you have. And in my opinion, I think we do (have the talent) to win a championship.
"We have three All-Star-caliber players. We have experienced players, and we have some youth who can give us speed. Now, it's up to us to come out, play hard and deliver."
