Phil Jackson details his pitch to Pau Gasol

With Carmelo Anthony’s decision to stay with the New York Knicks far from certain, the team is continuing to try to lure other free agents to New York in hopes of building a strong team to contend in the East next season.

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One of the marquee free agents the Knicks have been in contact with is Lakers big man Pau Gasol. Phil Jackson confirmed earlier this week that he and Gasol have had direct contact during the free agency period, and today Jackson detailed his pitch to the Spaniard (Courtesy of the New York Post):

"[Gasol] knows what he has here and what is possible. He’d like to play with Carmelo and like to play with a winner. We can’t guarantee that, but with him we can guarantee a much better chance. I told him in the right system and right coach, he can probably play a couple of more years. He got a laugh out of it.We’d like to be in the ballpark on where he’s getting contracts offered. I anticipate it’s going to be somewhere … $10 million [from the Lakers]. We don’t have that kind of money. We have what Pau needs — the United Nations."

If Gasol was to join the Knicks, he would have to take a significant pay cut in order to do so. Part of Jackson’s pitch to Pau was the close proximity he would be to the U.N., which he has worked for as a UNICEF ambassador for Spain since 2003.

"That’s the platform. Pretty soon he’ll be secretary of the United Nations and his career is headed that way and this is a great platform for you. I don’t know if that’s going to buy him into New York or not, but we’d like him to be here."

Although the pitch seems enticing, the money for a player like Gasol is simply not their for the Knicks, and trying to clear out room would be quite difficult to do. If Jackson is able to get Gasol in a Knicks jersey next year despite the odds stacked against him, it would be a huge win for the team.

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