Los Angeles Lakers point guard Steve Nash is not getting any younger and the injuries continue to pile up as he gets up their in age. Recently, the time that Nash has had to take off related to back pains has led to rumors of a potential retirement, which were once again brought to the forefront by NBA writer Peter Vecsey.
Of course, the rumors seem to be just that and there is no real reason to believe Nash will not be returning to the court.
I'm hearing Nash's pain is forcing him 2 seriously consider calling it a career. He'd still get $ this yr & next & LA'd get cap relief next
— Peter Vecsey (@PeterVecsey1) November 19, 2013
In fact, Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni recently said that there has been no discussion about shutting Nash down or having him walk away, so we can put those rumors to rest. From Ramona Shelburne of ESPN:
D'Antoni on Nash: "He’s going to try and do everything he can to come back. Whether he can get over this, we’ll see. We think he can."
— Ramona Shelburne (@ramonashelburne) November 19, 2013
D'Antoni on Nash: "There’s no talk of him sitting over there eating bon bons the rest of the way. No."
— Ramona Shelburne (@ramonashelburne) November 19, 2013
When you consider the Lakers were expected to struggle early in the season in the absence of Kobe Bryant, it only makes sense for them to try to ride out their problems and wait for their biggest star to come back.
For Nash, that means resting him and allowing him to fully recover until he can return to the court.
But as far as those midseason retirement talks go, we wouldn’t expect anything to come of it.