LA Lakers New Look: Steve Nash
The Los Angles Lakers have just hit the jackpot. It may be argued that this would have been better a few years ago when Kobe and Nash were in their prime, but this mix right here is pure gold. As a basketball fan, I’m drooling at the prospect of watching this team in action. Dwight Howard, Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash, Metta World Peace and Pau Gasol. Each one of them are worth the price of admission by their own right. At first glance this may seem like an all star team. All star teams during the weekend in February are deadly enough as it is, but this will be an all star team which gets to play 82 games in the regular season before going into the playoffs and contending for a championship.
Here’s how I expect these four to adapt and fit in their new roles:
Steve Nash: NBA offers a player camera with the League Pass. If I had to train that camera on one player in the LA Lakers, it would be Steve Nash. Playing the most important position in basketball, watching Steve Nash work his magic in this roster will be a thing of beauty. Nash is at his best in pick and roll situations. Also when he’s just holding the ball, watching and waiting for a play to develop as he moves around. What Nash excels at is anticipating a slipup by the defense and making them pay.
Teams will have to pick their poison with this squad. It’s heads I win, tails you lose. When teams choose to pay more attention to one star or on one side of the floor, Nash will make them pay with his impeccable playmaking and judgement. Nash is a playmaker first and foremost. Pick and rolls with Nash and Gasol, leading to a jam by Dwight, while Kobe actually applauds them, that’s something I can’t wait to see.
Steve Nash holds a degree in Sociology, maybe that’s how he’s able to understand how to be such a great teammate. Nash won’t have to change his game all that much to fit in with this squad. Only the burden of carrying the offense on his shoulders night in and night out will have been lifted from his shoulders
Usually when a franchise player leaves his former team for greener pastures, it invites scorn and questions about team loyalty and family values and what not. In case of Steve Nash it’s the other way round. It’s like that guy whom you know to be in an abusive relationship and all his friends are begging him to call it off and walk away, but he’s a stickler for loyalty and refuses to budge. Steve Nash did all he could for the Suns and more. He carried them to the Western Conference Finals with Amare Stoudemire. And the next year, the Suns let go of Amare, effectively miring the Suns in mediocrity. It’s like you gift her with a car as a symbol of your love and she drives away waving at you. Yeah I hope you crash and burn, leaving me like that. Who do you think you are?
Anyway, Steve Nash. From the arid deserts of Arizona to the glitzy and flashy city of LA. Although Phoenix isn’t close to LA in terms of being a big market team, that hasn’t held Steve back in marketing his image and his brand. Nash has his own film production company, Meathawk productions. Moving to the city of lights will be an added bonus for Nash’s off court image and activities.
He does turn out funny stuff:
Maybe when Nash takes a shot and misses, and Kobe pulls this face:
Or maybe this face:
Maybe Nash will be able to resort to some funny shindig to appease the alpha dog on this team.
On a serious note, Steve Nash’s contribution will be as influential as the amount of time he’s allowed to just dribble around and do his thing. Nash is a better shooter off the dribble than from catch and shoot situations.
Some may point out that the last time Nash was paired with a huge center, Shaq, who preferred getting the ball in the post instead of running pick and rolls, Nash wasn’t able to thrive all that well. But this time around there’s another guy who’s one of the best to be paired with Nash in pick and rolls, Pau Gasol. Although Gasol is less of a slasher then Amare was, he can stretch the floor and then dump it down low to Shaq. Gasol is a better passer than he’s given credit for.
Coming up next: a look at how the next big acquisition, Dwight Howard will fit in with this new Lakers squad.