Nash: Lakers’ first great point guard in years
The Los Angeles Lakers haven’t had a great point guard since Kobe Bryant joined the team in 1996.
Now they have one of the greatest of all-time to pair with Bryant in the backcourt.
Steve Nash, who arrived in the NBA the same time as Bryant in ’96, was acquired from the Phoenix Suns in a sign-and-trade deal that cost the Lakers two first-round draft picks, two second-round draft picks and about $3 million in cash.
Nash, a free agent, was courted by the Toronto Raptors and the New York Knicks, but he sold the Suns on sending him to the rival Lakers so he could stay relatively close to his three children in Phoenix. The Lakers were in the market for a point guard after Ramon Sessions chose to become a free agent instead of exercising the option for one more season with the Lakers.
Sessions had been the Lakers’ main target entering free agency also, but Nash became an exciting alternative. The Lakers became exciting for Nash to think about also: he hasn’t won an NBA title, while Bryant has five — and teammates such as Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol, who could help the Lakers win now, too.
Gasol said on a Twitter video chat from Spain that he was excited about Nash joining the team.
“It would be a true pleasure to play with Steve,” Gasol said. “I know he still has a lot of juice in him, so I look forward to that. He makes everyone around him better. It’s an exciting moment for the Lakers and Lakers fans.”
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