Report: Knicks working hard to land Nash, but hesitant to give up Iman Shumpert

Steve Nash is an unrestricted free agent who is being courted at the moment by at least four teams: the Knicks, Raptors, Mavericks, and Lakers. Conspicuously absent from that list are the Suns, but all signs show that they’re ready to move on, and won’t come up with the money or the years that others are willing to in order to retain Nash’s services.

Nash can of course sign wherever he chooses. But because of salary cap restrictions, for him to get close to the money he’s worth (in the $8 million per year range), certain teams would have to work out a sign-and-trade to send players back to Phoenix to create that cap space.

The Knicks might be where Nash is leaning at the moment, but they would need to include Iman Shumpert in the deal. They’re hesitant to do that, reports MSG Network’s Alan Hahn:

Steve Nash, meanwhile, and the Knicks are working with the Suns to complete a sign-and-trade deal that would bring Nash to New York. Indications are the Knicks are his top choice, but because a trade is complicated (and there is great hesitation to give up Iman Shumpert), the Raptors are in play. A lot of effort has been made, however, to get this done.

Shumpert showed value last season as an excellent perimeter defender, which is an area where the Suns desperately need to upgrade their talent. However, Shumpert suffered a season-ending knee injury in the first game of the playoffs, and may not be ready to return to action until midway through next season.

The Suns will be fortunate to get anything of value in return for Nash, given his unrestricted status. The Knicks may like Shumpert, but if New York is Nash’s top choice, and the team is in win-now mode with Amare Stoudemire and Tyson Chandler likely having two or three more seasons playing at an elite level, it should be an easy choice for New York to make to do what’s necessary to get Nash.

If the Knicks can’t get a deal done -- either because of their hesitations or the Suns’ demands -- Nash’s second choice would appear to be Toronto. The Mavericks will make an offer, but maybe only for one year due to wanting to keep their cap space freed up for 2013 free agents Dwight Howard and Chris Paul.

The Lakers have expressed interest, but it’s unclear what they would be willing to offer Phoenix in that all-important sign-and-trade. Nash would be a great fit for that team, and has said publicly he believes Kobe Bryant is the league’s best player. But his interest in L.A. is much lower than New York and Toronto at this point, so consider the Lakers a longshot at best to be the spot where Nash will eventually end up next season.