NBA: Free Agent Marc Gasol Admires Duncan, Spurs

One of the top free agents in the 2015 offseason, Marc Gasol has lots of time before making his decision of either staying with the Memphis Grizzlies or playing for another team to continue his NBA career. Recently, the Spanish center gave some clues on what factors he’ll consider when he signs or re-signs and also showed some admiration to a rival big man playing for a rival team.

“San Antonio is a model franchise and I’ve always admired Tim Duncan,” Gasol said Thursday to Spanish daily Diario AS, as reported by San Antonio Express News. “We’ll see what happens this summer.”

Duncan has been the longtime franchise player and leader for the Spurs, the Grizzlies’ rival in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference. The Spurs, led by coach and general manager Greg Popovich, have one of the most respected organizations in the league.

“What matters to me is the team,” Gasol said when asked about what factors he will consider during the free agency process. Gasol also said he will begin talking with different teams starting in June and admitted that the decision "will be complicated."

If he chooses San Antonio, Gasol would most likely be paired with Duncan in the front court and join veteran point guard Tony Parker and rising star Kawhi Leonard as part of the core. The Spurs have also been linked to another free-agent big man: the Portland Trail Blazers' LaMarcus Aldridge.

Gasol has been with the Grizzlies for the past seven seasons. He played for pro teams in Spain from 2003 to 2008, but his ties to Memphis date to his teenage years as he attended high school at Lausanne Collegiate School in that city.

The Grizzlies have been one of the more successful teams in recent years, making the postseason the last five years with a core of Gasol, Zach Randolph, Mike Conley and Tony Allen. However, that core has always come up short. The farthest it got was the 2013 Western Conference Finals, where it lost to the Spurs in a sweep.