Keeping Steve Nash Is the Right Strategic Decision for Lakers

When Labor Day weekend passed, Steve Nash was still a member of the Los Angeles Lakers. The team chose not to use a stretch provision that would have allowed it to waive the future Hall of Famer and amortize his $9.7 million salary.

As Eric Pincus for the Los Angeles Times noted, “Had the Lakers waived Nash prior to September, they would have been able to stretch his salary over the next three years at around $3.2 million annually.”

It was the right decision from a current, practical purpose and from a longer-term, strategic way of thinking as well.

For now, the Lakers need all bodies on board. Apart from Nash, the point guard corps include only Jeremy Lin and rookie Jordan Clarkson, a second-round draft pick who is untested in the NBA apart from an impressive showing during NBA Summer League action.

Perhaps Nash can rediscover the fountain of youth and turn back the tide of crippling injuries. After being acquired from the Phoenix Suns two seasons ago, the point guard suffered a fractured leg that led to an escalating series of nerve and back issues.

Last season, Nash appeared in only 15 games, averaging 6.8 points and 5.7 assists. Now, after a summer of training and playing soccer, he appears to finally have his health back—precarious as it is—and is ready to do some serious balling again.

In fact, according to Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News, new head coach Byron Scott has the two-time MVP penciled into a preliminary starting lineup:

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Scott will spend training camp figuring out his starting lineup, which he says will currently feature Nash, Bryant, Carlos Boozer and Jordan Hill. He is leaning toward starting Wesley Johnson at small forward because of his defensive potential and relying on Nick Young’s prolific scoring off the bench.

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All that could change in a heartbeat, of course. Nash wasn’t a fan of the Princeton offense when Mike Brown tried introducing it at the beginning of the 2012-13 season, and Scott will now be using his own version of an off-ball system that shares certain precepts with the triangle offense.

And even if Nash does ultimately embrace the half-court sets, there’s still the question of health—nobody really knows what will happen the first time the 40-year-old takes a hard hit or torques his body spontaneously.

But there is also Plan B, and in forward-thinking terms, it is the most obvious one of all.

When is an inflated NBA contract worth more than a modest one? When it is about to expire and is attached to a marquee name. Nash could play well enough to pique the interest of other dream-chasing teams, or he could simply equal a piece in a trade puzzle.

This season’s trade deadline will expire on February 19, and as it draws closer, there will be the inevitable stampede of teams looking to make moves for a variety of reasons—whether in anticipation of a playoff push or as a means to clear salary space.

These latter situations make up a major portion of deadline trades, especially with losing teams who see shedding ballast as the cleanest path back to future contention.

Enter the big-name player who is past his prime and on an expiring contract—perhaps he offers something in temporary value or maybe he’ll be waived as soon as he arrives. Either way, it’s usually about fixing the books.

And then there’s transactions that involve legendary players coming home—this is where nostalgia, fanbases and possible redemption scenarios collide.

Could a favorite son return to Phoenix for one last blaze of glory before having his jersey retired?

During a Grantland podcast last March, Bill Simmons spoke to Nash about the circumstances that led to his exit from the Suns during a rebuild. Simmons said, “The irony is, you would probably would have loved playing on this particular Phoenix team.”

Nash responded, “Oh absolutely, and playing for Horny (new coach Jeff Hornacek), he’s a guy that I’ve known a long time, that I really like and it would be a lot of fun.”

Is there a deal that makes sense for both teams? One possibility is Eric Bledsoe, who has yet to sign a contract with the Suns, raising a scenario in which he signs a one-season qualifying offer, which would then pair him and fellow guard Goran Dragic as unrestricted free agents next summer.

What if Phoenix were to try and get something out of Bledsoe’s contract before then?

Per Marc Stein of ESPN.com, "The Lakers, for example, are just one team league sources say would likely make a hard run at both of them, based on the premise that the Suns couldn’t afford the cost of paying both at that point, theoretically making either Bledsoe or Dragic gettable.”

Phoenix would probably made a harder push to keep Dragic, who is coming off a breakout season. Would Nash like to end his career mentoring the fiery Slovenian?

Paul Connors/Associated Press

During the Grantland podcast, Simmons said, “And Dragic, was kind of, you created him a lab I think.”

“He’s a great kid, competitive, athletic, he’s really a good player,” responded Nash. “That’s one of the things that’s been really fun for me, to watch him kick ass. You feel like you’re watching a little brother in a way.”

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Dragic got soooo ballsy with his passes last year. Steve Nash level inventiveness. http://t.co/D8hEJCopwA

— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) September 2, 2014"

Who else would the Suns want in such a trade—perhaps Jordan Hill?

Such a scenario is nothing more than conjecture at this point, just as all future trades are unpredictable flights of fancy. But at the end of the day, hanging onto Nash’s contract this summer made sense for the Lakers.

Whether he returns to some semblance of former greatness in Los Angeles or serves as an asset in an ongoing rebuild, Nash’s presence has greater value than waiving him and eating nearly $10 million dollars of nothingness over three more years.