Pau Gasol will be sidelined for three months following knee procedure

The Lakers released a statement Thursday that Pau Gasol will be sidelined from basketball activities for three months after receiving a surgery to address a degenerative knee condition know as tendonosis

"During the procedure, which was performed by Dr. Steve Yoon of the Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Group, a probe was inserted into Gasol’s knees, which directed ultrasound wavelengths to debride degenerated tissue of Gasol’s patellar tendons non-surgically.Gasol will also receive autologous stem cell injections, which will stimulate regeneration of his tissue. The injections will be administered next week at Kerlan-Jobe by Dr. Yoon."

For those of us that didn’t attend the University of Alabama School of Medicine like Dr. Yoon – the FAST procedure, at least according to the Mayo Clinic, is a minimally invasive treatment designed to remove tendon scar tissue (the source of pain) without disturbing the surrounding healthy tendon tissue.

This surgery could ultimately mean a number of things of things for Gasol moving forward:

1. The Lakers target Gasol, who’s owed more than $19 million dollars next season, with their amnesty provision.

2. They dangle Gasol’s expiring contract in front of middle-of-the-road teams until someone bites.

3. Keep him and see what happens.

With the harshness of the new collective bargaining agreement, the first or second option may be more realistic than most fans are willing to accept.

But at the same time, with the Kobe Bryant making it clear that he wants Gasol in LA and a supporting cast the demands the Lakers win now, why not keep the core together for one more season.

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