Miami Heat officials led by president Pat Riley and coach Erik Spoelstra will meet with free-agent center Pau Gasol in hopes of convincing him to come to South Beach, according to ESPN.
The Heat have long been in search of a dependable big man who can help control the boards and the paint for them. Gasol averaged a career-high 11.1 rebounds for the Lakers last season.
Gasol, 34, is one of the highly coveted big men in the market. Aside from the LA Lakers which he has played for the past six years, other teams that are interested in signing him are the Chicago Bulls and Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Bulls had met with Gasol on Thursday in Los Angeles with center Joakim Noah part of the recruitment process, according to ESPN.
A day before that, the OKC Thunder also met with him with their superstar duo of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook making a strong pitch to the two-time NBA champion. It was also reported that Thunder general manager Sam Presti had a telephone conversation with Gasol. Despite not having enough money to spend on Gasol, the Thunder believe that they can entice him to join Durant and Westbrook and possibly unseat the newly-crowned NBA champions San Antonio Spurs out west.
One source close to ESPN said Gasol is open to the idea of joining Durant and Westbrook despite him receiving only $5 million. It is widely believed that Gasol is seeking an annual pay of at least $10 million.
Still, the LA Lakers remain a serious contender to retain the services of the Spaniard. Gasol is close with superstar Kobe Bryant and loves living in LA. Another team that is pursuing the seven-footer is the New York Knicks, led by their president and former Lakers coach Phil Jackson.
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