Sep 14, 2015 at 10:44a ET
Sep 14, 2015 at 10:44a ET
NBA franchises have always been a bit concerned with their players appearing in international competition. These guys are on guaranteed contracts, after all, so not only would they get paid in full in the event of an injury, the NBA club would be without their services for potentially an entire season.
So, when you hear of a star player like Pau Gasol ignoring a doctor's minutes limit, it's going to raise a few eyebrows.
Nikos Varlas of Eurohoops.net:
It all turned out fine in this case, and Gasol went on to have a remarkable 30-point performance in leading Spain to the quarterfinals.