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Los Angeles Lakers Will Try To Trade Steve Nash

By Andrew Melnick

Although he is out for the season and has likely played his last NBA game, the Los Angeles Lakers will still try to trade two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
Although he is out for the season and has likely played his last NBA game, the Los Angeles Lakers will still try to trade two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports /
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Although he is out for the season and has likely played his last NBA game, the Los Angeles Lakers will still try to trade two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash

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The Los Angeles Lakers brought in center Dwight Howard and point guard Steve Nash to team with guard Kobe Bryant and big man Pau Gasol in order to win another title.

Howard moved on in 2013, signing with the Houston Rockets while Gasol left for the Chicago Bulls in 2014. Nash is out for the season with a back injury and the Lakers look destined for another long year. That’s led to speculation they could try to trade Nash’s expiring contract.

ESPN’s Marc Stein reports the team is still evaluating their options as far as Nash is concerned.

“With respect to injured guard Steve Nash, meanwhile, sources say that the Lakers are still evaluating their options,” Stein reported. “As ESPN.com reported last month when Nash was ruled out for the 2014-15 season because of recurring nerve issues with his back, Lakers officials are planning to explore the trade market for potential deals between now and the February trade deadline with Nash’s $9.7 million expiring contract.”

There could be somewhat of a market for Nash if teams are looking to to clear cap space for the summer of 2015. He is in the final year of his deal worth $9,701,000 and will come off of the books this summer. However, it still seems like a bit of a long-shot the Lakers will be able to deal.

The Lakers are already without the seventh-overall pick in the draft, Julius Randle and have been granted a Disabled Player’s Exception, which could be another tool they use in a trade. Another injured Laker, swingman Nick Young, may be nearing a return.

Nash averaged 6.8 points, 5.7 assists and 1.9 rebounds per game while shooting 38.3% from the field, 33.3% from beyond the arc and 91.7% from the free throw line last season. Nash was the 15th-overall pick of the 1996 NBA Draft. In his career, the two-time NBA MVP has averaged 14.3 points, 8.5 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game while shooting 49.0% from the floor, 42.8% from three and 90.4% from the free throw line.

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