Dwight Howard Rumors: How Steve Nash Factors into the Orlando Magic's Plans

The Orlando Magic are trying to put together a deal which would land them Steve Nash. At least in the short-term, this would make a huge difference in terms of what the Magic can do to keep Dwight Howard. 

The immediate impact is obvious. First, Steve Nash could make me and three random readers look like a decent NBA-caliber team. His ability to create shots for his teammates, and score without being a score-first point guard, is unparalleled.

Pair him up with Dwight Howard, and you have an inside-outside tandem that is absolutely lethal. 

Furthermore, what the Magic have been missing for years is a good mid-range shooter, and Nash is not a good mid-range shooter; he's a great mid-range shooter. In fact, he's arguably one of the best pure shooters ever. John Stockton is the only guard in the history of the game with a better true shooting percentage and over 10,000 points scored. 

The Magic would be veritably impossible to defend with Nash running the point, surrounded by a multitude of three-point shooters and the best low-post scorer in the game in the middle. 

It's easy to see how that would factor into the Dwight Howard plans for the Magic. It's their plan to keep him. Get Nash and you have a chance to keep him. You give him that point guard he wants to play with, and suddenly, the sun will rise in Orlando. 

The problem becomes, how do you get him? The Suns would want the Magic to eat a bad contract. Maybe even two. They'd also want the Magic to include Ryan Anderson or J.J. Reddick. Reddick would be a lot easier to part with than Anderson, but probably hard to take for Phoenix. 

The trade of Jameer Nelson and Ryan Anderson for Steve Nash passes the ESPN Trade Machine, but that doesn't equate to passing on the logic. Does it make sense for both teams to make the deal?

As the saying goes, you can't get something for nothing, and because of that, the Magic are going to have to give up something to get Nash. It might come down to what Nash is planning on doing next year. If he can play another year or two, and he certainly looks like he can, will he play them with Orlando?

If he is, it's a move worth considering. In a lot of ways, it doesn't matter what Otis Smith thinks, I think or you think. It's all about what Dwight Howard thinks. If he takes this as a sign of the Magic trying to do what he wants them to do to get better, it might be enough to keep in Orlando. 

And right now, if you're Otis Smith, that's all that matters.