Pau Gasol has signed a contract to resume his professional basketball career, but we won’t be seeing him back in the NBA this season.
Gasol announced on Tuesday that he has signed with FC Barcelona for the remainder of the season. The 40-year-old said he is happy to be returning to his home country of Spain to play for “the club where I began.”
Very happy to come back home.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Força Barça! pic.twitter.com/6CewIY2Bil— Pau Gasol (@paugasol) February 23, 2021
Gasol played for Barcelona from 1998-2001 before he was selected third overall in the 2001 NBA Draft. He recently denied that he was planning to sign with Barcelona, but that was likely because negotiations were still ongoing.
Reports about Gasol signing with Barcelona have been around since the summer. Returning to Spain may not have been his first choice, however, as it seemed like Gasol wanted to join his brother Marc on the Los Angeles Lakers.
Pau last played in the NBA in the 2018-2019 season. A stress fracture in his left foot has kept him out since May 2019.
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