Toronto Raptors: Top 5 Centers in franchise history

Raptors center No. 4: Marc Gasol

Though short lived, Marc Gasol was the final piece of the Raptors’ championship puzzle.

A guy like Marc is almost a necessity for any team hoping to win it all.  A savvy, smart, former All-Star, who may be a bit over the hill but plays a perfect role in the rotation and can occasionally flash his former glory. Think 2020 Rajon Rondo or 2012-13 Ray Allen.

In his two years playing with Toronto, Gasol never put up tremendous offensive stats, averaging around 10 points and 6.5 rebounds on 45% shooting. However, anyone who watched prime Gasol remembers that the counting stats could never fully account for his effect on the game.

Marc Gasol had a huge impact on the Raptors

Offensively he was never a knock-down shooter from three, but he was good enough that the threat of him out there forced defenses to respect him, opening up the court.  He could isolate him the post, overpower smaller centers with his bulk, and consistently hit that flatline fall-away jumper.

Offensively, his greatest asset to the Raptors was his playmaking. Gasol is unquestionably one of the greatest passing big men ever. Fans remember how he would feed backdoor cutters and operate the offense from the high post with his belly keeping his defender at bay. His game was a beautiful ying-yang of clumsiness and graceful finesse.

Despite his skills on the offensive end, during the title run, Gasol was even more valuable as a defender. His wide center of gravity and impeccable sense of timing made him a deceptively dangerous rim protector. While never a great athlete, he was still mobile enough in 2019 to flash out to the perimeter on shooters.

In 2019, he held All-Star Nikola Vucevic to just 11 points a game on 36% shooting against Orlando in the first round of the postseason, then followed that up by going toe-to-toe with Joel Embiid in the second round. The Philadelphia star was held to just to 37% shooting.

Against Milwaukee in the Conference Finals, he was the most important part of the “Giannis Wall”, pitching in with 2 blocks a game. Against Golden State in the Finals, he was the “1” in the Box-and-1.

Unfortunately, the Raptors’ success story with Gasol was short-lived.  By the time 2020 rolled around, Gasol was 35 years old and starting to show it. He shot less often, and wasn’t moving like he used to.

It doesn’t matter. Gasol swung that title for the Raptors. That 2019 team operated like a well-oiled machine, and Gasol was its anchor.