 June 4, 2010 -- Following Game 1, Lakers forward Pau Gasol was asked about what had changed over the course of the nine years he has played in the league, matching up against Kevin Garnett.
Gasol's response was certainly something that should provide some bulletin board material for Garnett, who wasn't at his best on opening night of the NBA Finals.
"On Kevin's part, he's also lost some explosiveness...He's more of a jump shooter now you could say, comes off the lane. Before he had a really, really quick first step and was getting to the lane and he was more aggressive then. Time passes and we all suffer it one way or another, but he's still a terrific player, a terrific competitor, and he's going to bring everything he's got. You can count on that."
Despite Gasol's claim about Garnett being more of a jump-shooter, in-depth statistics will show that 70% of Garnett's shots were jumpers this season, as compared to 73% in the 2007-08 championship season.
Boston coach Doc Rivers countered Gasol with strong assurances that Garnett's problem Thursday was mental rather than physical.
"I just thought, honestly, he got so hyped up about the game he almost took himself out," Rivers said. "He was trying to slow himself down. He didn't have a great game. But no, he's fine healthwise and all that. It's funny -- just with our team -- whenever we don't play well, it always comes down to either health or age, and it's usually sometimes we just don't play well. I thought last night was more of that.
"I just thought he struggled. He had one of those nights. We all have them. We're just not used to seeing him have them unless there's something wrong. But he's fine, I can guarantee you that."
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