Pau Gasol Enters the Hall of Fame. If the Lakers Had a Ring of Honor, Who Would Be Inducted?

The Lakers have many, many Hall of Fame players. And now they have one more. Pau Gasol entered the Naismith Basketball HOF over the weekend, and did so in typical Gasol fashion - meaning with class and grace, honoring his family and teammates and, of course, Kobe Bryant. Gasol isn't in the Hall because he is a tremendous person, but it's hard not to focus on that. He is as well-respected a player and person as you'll find in this industry. There are players who have excellent public reputations where, off the record, players/coaches/media/team personnel will roll their eyes or flat out contradict the public image. That doesn't happen with Gasol. Moreover, he's taken the burden—and it is that—of being a leading voice to carry on the legacy of Kobe. Talking about him, honoring him, and so on, in ways and in moments where doing so diverts attention to the quality of player he was. And he was truly outstanding. But Gasol gives up some of that shine and undivided attention in service of something he believes is more important, and to honor his friend. But a reminder, Gasol is in the HOF because he was a stunningly good player, with a multitude of skills and a hoops IQ that was truly off the charts. Meanwhile, whenever a Laker makes the Hall of Fame, it points attention to the fact that the team doesn't have any level of honor below jersey retirement, which requires admission to the HOF. Meaning a ton of excellent players, from Michael Cooper, Byron Scott and Norm Nixon on down, don't have any sort of formal honorary. So let's say the Lakers had one of those... who would get in? HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky SEGMENT 1: Pau makes the HOF, and does so in typical Gasol fashion. SEGMENT 2: The Lakers don't have a Ring of Honor. If they did, who gets in? SEGMENT 3: What about the folks from the Eddie Jones Era? Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! FanDuel Make Every Moment More. Right now, when you bet on a Super Bowl Winner, you can GET BONUS BETS EVERY TIME THEY WIN IN THE REGULAR SEASON! FanDuel.com/LOCKEDON. FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices