Only three days after the NBA free agency period began, a bombshell was dropped on the NBA landscape when it was announced that Steve Nash would be a Laker via a sign and trade with the Phoenix Suns. Shock spread around the league with everyone wondering how the Lakers could pull the deal off and why Nash would want to join his longtime Pacific Division rival.
But while surprise came from all corners of the association, it was the Toronto Raptors that took the news the hardest. The organization (and their fans) thought their native son was returning to his roots to guide their franchise. And, it turns out, with good reason. Nash himself has since come out and said the deal was nearly done.
Steve Buffery of the Toronto Sun has the report:In an interview with QMI Agency last week, Nash confirmed he was on the verge of signing a deal with the Raptors. GM Bryan Colangelo reportedly offered the Victoria, B.C., product a three-year, $36-million contract -- close to $10 million more than he received from the Lakers.
“I was very close, you know,” Nash said. “Because it appeared that they were going to be an option long before free agency started. So I got my head around that and I was comfortable with that and happy with the opportunity to play in Toronto. But when this opportunity (with the Lakers) became a reality, I couldn’t pass it up.”
This revelation may seem like pouring salt in the wound but, in reality, the fact that Nash is in Southern California rather than north of the border is probably best for all involved.
The Lakers got an elite point guard and filled their biggest positional hole. They’ll pair Nash with Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, and Dwight Howard and chase rings for the next few seasons -- or as long as their bodies hold up.
From the Raptors side, they may not have brought in Canada’s most decorated baller to play in front of a “home” crowd, but in the wake of losing out, they’ve done quite well for themselves. They’ve since turned a future draft pick into Kyle Lowry -- a fantastic point guard in his own right -- and have brought last season’s lottery pick Jonas Valanciunas over from Europe.
Those two, along with rookie Terrence Ross and a healthy Andrea Bargnani, form the core of a young and up and coming team that will grow up together. In a season or two, they’ll still be in their primes pushing for a playoff spot rather than watching an aged Steve Nash play out the final games of his career.
The way it all turned out may not be what the Raptors wanted at the time, but they may well be better off in the long run. Even if it’s the Lakers that are seen as the short term winners.