Steve Nash: Toronto Raptors Offer Free-Agent Point Guard a 3-Year Deal

There has been no shortage of "Steve Nash to the Toronto Raptors" talk over the past week or two. The ball is now, as they say, in Nash's court.

That's because, according to ESPN.com, the Raps have made an offer to the All-Star point guard.

Marc Stein reported on Monday, "The Toronto Raptors have offered free agent point guard Steve Nash a three-year, $36 million contract, according to sources." 

By this time, it comes as no surprise that the Raptors are pursuing Nash, but the aggressiveness of the reported offer certainly puts to rest any theory that Canada's lone team would make a token offer to Nash for the purpose of winning some positive publicity. 

At 38 years of age, Nash is unlikely to receive many contracts of a three-year duration. For that matter, he is unlikely to receive many offers that include a $12 million annual salary.

According to Royce Young of CBSSports.com, the Phoenix Suns' offer to Nash is for $20 million over two years. 

Still, Nash is expected to have other pursuers this offseason, so a landing spot north of the border is anything but assured. All of the Brooklyn Nets, Miami Heat, Dallas Mavericks and New York Knicks are expected to make a push for his services.

But, Toronto seems more than willing to go above and beyond in terms of the money and years it can offer. Couple these aspects of a potential deal with allowing Nash, a Canadian, to play in Canada, and the possibility of a deal getting done looks quite reasonable.

The only element lacking in the offer is assurance that the team will compete for a title in the next couple of years. Toronto is a young team that should be more competitive next year than last, but if it is a championship ring that Nash covets above all else, he will undoubtedly have more attractive options coming his way.

On the other hand, $36 million is a lot of money.