Former Laker Pau Gasol Thanks IOC For Postponing 2020 Olympics
Former Laker Pau Gasol thanked the International Olympic Committee on Tuesday for agreeing to postpone the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Olympic Games were postponed "to a date beyond 2020 but not later than summer 2021," the IOC and Tokyo 2020 organizing committee said in a joint statement.
Gasol, who participated in the 2008, 2012 and 2016 Olympics for Spain's national basketball team, said delaying the Olympic Games was the prudent decision.
"This is a very difficult moment for everyone and the sports world has taken a leading role from the beginning of this unprecedented crisis," Gasol, who reportedly hoped to play in the 2020 Olympic Games, said in video on Twitter. "The health and well-being of all are always, and always will be, the priority. I want to thank the IOC for making this critical decision to ensure the safety of everyone involved in the celebration of the Olympic Games in Tokyo. We all have a key role to stay strong and continue facing this terrible pandemic. Together we will win the gold medal."
Gasol, 39, played for the Lakers from 2008-2014, winning championships alongside Kobe Bryant in 2009 and 2010. After an 18-season career in the NBA, he was waived by the Portland Trail Blazers in November while struggling to rehabilitate a left foot injury that required surgery.
The sports world has come to a halt amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The NBA suspended the season March 11 after Utah's Rudy Gobert tested positive for the virus, setting into play a domino effect that temporarily stopped sports on every level.
Five of the 44 finalists for the U.S. Olympic men's basketball team were Lakers players, including LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Dwight Howard, Kyle Kuzma and JaVale McGee.
Both James and Davis were unsure in February whether they were going to participate in the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
"My name is in the hat and it’s always predicated on: one; my body, how my body is feeling at the end of the season -- I hope to make a long playoff run," said James, a three-time Olympian. "And then where my mind is and then where my family’s head is. So, it’s a lot of factors but my name is in the hat."
The 27-year-old Davis, who was 18 when he played in the Olympics in 2012, said, "I'm getting old. I don't know."
Meanwhile, Howard said he would absolutely play if he made the team. After he won a gold medal in 2008, Howard wouldn't let it out of his sight.
"I carried around my gold medal for almost four, five years after we won it the first time," Howard said. "Everywhere I went. On the road, even during the season I took it with me and I’d just look at it everyday like, man, this is amazing that I got a gold medal. I’d love to have another one."
McGee also was hoping for a chance to represent his country.
"It’s a stamp on your legacy," McGee said. "On your personal passport, saying you’re an Olympian, saying you’re an NBA champion. Just things of that nature are very important on your resume, I guess."
It's unclear when or if this NBA season will resume. This is the first time the modern Olympic Games have been disrupted since 1944.
