Why Steve Nash and Kobe Bryant Need Each Other for a Title

With the arrival of 38-year-old Steve Nash to the Los Angeles Lakers in a sign-and-trade deal reported by ESPN's Marc Stein, the time is now for Kobe Bryant to win his sixth NBA championship.

Nash, who has never won an NBA championship, probably chose the best place that he could have gone to have a shot at adding NBA champion to his resume. At this point in his career, it's clear that he can't carry a team to a championship. However, as a cog in a team that includes Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum? He has a serious chance.

At this point, earning a sixth ring is all that matters to Bryant. After 16 years in the NBA he's already proved he was among the elite in his generation, a prolific scorer and has a place among the best players of all time. He also knows that when everything is said and done the number of titles you win has a major impact on how you are looked at historically.

Nash also knows this. After years of being one of the Association's top passers and most electrifying players he realizes there is still a number that will haunt him until it is changed: zero. As in no NBA titles. If each player wants to get the title that means so much to their legacy they will need each other.

For Kobe, that may mean a reduced number of shots and working with the ball in his hands less. Kobe hasn't always been known as the best of teammates throughout his career and consistently has averaged around 20 shots per game and has seen his shooting percentage has dropped every year since the '08-'09 season in which he shot .467 from the field.

Playing with a legitimate point guard is something that Kobe will need to become accustomed to. According to ESPN Statistics and Information, the most assists per game a point guard has averaged in the Kobe Bryant era was Nick Van Exel with 8.5.

To give that some perspective, Nash hasn't averaged fewer than 8.5 assists since the '02-'03 season. If anyone is going to be able to feed Bryant when he's on and go elsewhere with the ball when Bryant is off, it's Nash.

At this point in his career Bryant needs someone like Nash. Someone that will control the ball and allow others to get involved when Bryant's shots aren't falling or when he has a bad matchup.

Conversely, Nash needs someone that can take over when things break down. In his advanced age, Nash has lost some of his explosiveness and no longer scores quite the way he used to. His 12.5 ppg was his lowest in a decade.

With Nash as the distributor and Kobe as a scorer, the Lakers will have an offensive attack that will give anyone fits. Finding a way for the two to coexist is the only way that they will win a title.