Q1: In the Los Angeles Lakers’ first game against the Phoenix Suns, Spanish power forward Pau Gasol’s 21-point performance was overshadowed by flashier efforts from his teammates Kobe Bryant and Lamar Odom. Gasol has been doing some overshadowing of his own, however – his younger brother Marc is a seven-foot-tall, Olympic-caliber NBA center. Marc Gasol now plays for the Memphis Grizzlies, but what other team drafted Marc in 2007 and what sports oddity was Marc a part of in 2008?
A1: Marc was drafted by the Lakers, who took him with the 48th pick of the draft. Just a year later, Marc was part of a five-player trade that swapped him, Kwame Brown, Javaris Crittendon, Aaron McKie and draft picks for his brother Pau and a draft pick. This transaction was the only one in NBA history to feature two brothers being traded for each other.
Q2: Philadelphia Flyers goalie Michael Leighton has garnered national attention for his two consecutive shutouts of the Montreal Canadiens, which is understandable, considering that Leighton is the Flyers’ backup goalie and is only starting because of an injury to Brian Boucher. Drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks in 1999 and now in his second stint in Philly, where was Leighton playing just six months ago before the Flyers claimed him off waivers?
A2: Carolina. As the Hurricanes’ backup goalie, Leighton saw little action, as Carolina signed Manny Legace to fill the crease when primary goaltender Cam Ward went down with an injury. When Boucher suffered a knee injury in Game Five of the Flyers’ conference semifinal series against the Boston Bruins, Philadelphia was forced to give Leighton a turn in the spotlight, and the NHL has seen how that has turned out.
Sports trivia
