2012 NBA Free Agents: Unrestricted Point Guards with the Most to Offer
With the arrival of the 2012 NBA Playoffs and offseason for 14 of the league's 30 teams comes time to speculate on the NBA's top free agents.
There is no denying just how critical having an elite point guard is to a team's championship aspirations in today's NBA. With that being said, let's take a look at the top unrestricted floor generals with the most to offer who could be on the move this summer
Steve Nash
The two-time MVP is 38 years old and looking to compete for a championship before his legs give out on him. Though Nash, a future Hall of Fame floor general, should be preparing for retirement after 16 tough seasons in the league, he's still playing and at an extremely high level.
Nash averaged a double-double in points and assists seven out of eight seasons in Phoenix since signing with the Suns back in the summer of 2004. He finished second behind Boston's Rajon Rondo in the assist race, averaging 10.7 per game with a less than stellar Suns squad.
The beloved point guard is also one of the best shooters the game has ever seen. Nash shoots better than 49 percent from the field, nearly 43 percent from beyond the arc and better than 90 percent from the free-throw line for his career.
Chauncey Billups
The one they call Mr. Big Shot will be 36 years old by the time training camp rolls around next season and if he's not playing for the Los Angeles Clippers, expect him to be in another NBA locker room providing invaluable leadership as one of the coolest points guards under pressure.
Billups averaged 15 points and four assists per game in 20 appearances with the Clippers this past season before going down with a devastating knee injury. Billups is a career 15.5 point, 5.5 assist player and still has one of the more lethal long-range shots in the league.
Like Nash, Billups brings a calm, steady hand to the offense and a wise veteran to take over late in games.
Goran Dragic
Contrary to Nash and Billups, Goran Dragic is a young point guard who shows no signs of slowing. Dragic will turn 26 in May and enter the offseason as an unrestricted free agent with the Houston Rockets, who traded for him at the deadline in 2011.
The Slovenian point guard spent two-and-a-half seasons playing behind and alongside Nash in Phoenix, which no doubt helped him to learn a lot about how to play the most important position at a high level on the sport's biggest stage.
Dragic averaged 11.7 points and 5.3 assists per game for the Rockets this past season, but showed excellent promise after stepping into the starting role for Kyle Lowry when he went down with an illness in early March. He averaged an incredible 18.9 points and 7.7 assists per game for Houston during the month of April.
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