Is it time to trade Nash?

[sunsfan88]

NOTE: The option "too early" on the poll means that its too early in the season to decide if we should trade Nash. Those that think we should stick with the same boring lineup for longer time should pick that option. Sorry for any confusion.

This article will ask you as a fan to do something nearly impossible.

Understanding the word "fan" is short for "fanatic," this article will ask you to look at the Phoenix Suns not subjectively as your favorite NBA team, but objectively as a business.

Looking at it objectively, ask yourself the question, "Is it time to trade Steve Nash?" Remember, objectivity is the key.

It's been awhile since the Steve Nash trade rumors and rebuttals have surfaced and subsided, but it is still an issue worth addressing.

Obviously depending on your criteria for what constitutes a good season your thoughts are going to vary. Last year, many people in the Valley just wanted to beat San Antonio. Once that happened and the Suns won a few games against LA, the fans had bigger aspirations. Perhaps even delusions. Most analysts feel with or without Steve Nash, this team is not a title contender.

His stats are good this year, so it is clear he is playing at a high level. What is not clear is how many wins Steve Nash's play will translate into.
Without question the team plays better when Nash is on the court, but he can't carry this team. Depending on who you ask, Atlas could not carry this team of wing players (not to mention lack of a stout interior presence).

This is not your grandparents' or even your parents' NBA. Nash is a great player and the face of the franchise, but nowadays teams deal/let star players walk. Being the face of a franchise does not carry the same weight as it once did.

Few would argue about Steve Nash being the face of the Phoenix Suns,but Amar'e Stoudemire was arguably the best player on the roster last year. Now he's putting up MVP caliber numbers in New York. What did the Suns get in return? Essentially nothing.

The point being, if you look at it objectively, it is a great time to deal Steve Nash. He is playing at a high level, so it makes sense to do it now rather than try to do it in two or three years when his skills have detoriated. He may no longer be on primetime, but his career is not completely in it's twilight just yet. His trade value is not getting higher. Do it now.

Again, fellow Phoenix Fans, look at this objectively. The Suns are not going to get equal value for their all-star. Less than equal value is still better than no value at all. What does it benefit the team to let him retire a Sun and get nothing in return? A warm fuzzy feeling inside? This is a business. Businesses need assets.

Trading Nash does not show any disrespect to him nor the fans if done properly. Bring him in and sit him down and ask where are some places he'd want to go. It might take a three team trade to make it happen, but the front office can try and work something out to one of his more favorable destinations. We're not talking about a talented team cancer. We're talking about a two-time MVP who makes everyone around him better. Can he really be that hard to trade? Besides what's harder, trading Steve Nash or winning a championship with this team as it is currently comprised?

Unless Suns fans want to have another good season (albeit good without a ring), this team needs to be rebuilt. Doesn't it make sense to start with the piece that will get the most in return?

http://www.examiner.com/sports-in-phoenix/is-it-time-for-the-phoenix-suns-to-trade-steve-nash

 

[sunsfan88]

I personally am opposed to trading Nash right now but if thing continue to slide, then I think its the best for both sides to let him go.

If we were to let him go, this would be nice;

http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=28z8xap

Then Turkoglu can become the primary ball handler and (hopefully) play as well as he did with Orlando.

 

[Trifecta]

I'm torn on this. If we trade him now we will get pennies on the dollar for him and suck for years to come. If we keep him we might make the playoffs for a couple more seasons before Nash retires, and then we will suck for years to come when he goes.

So the question becomes - should we just bite the bullet and get our late 1st rounder for Nash and get on with rebuilding, or should we hold on for a couple of years of .500 basketball and pray that some miracle bandaid solution comes along to help us compete? Many would say bite the bullet. But Sarver wants to sell tickets, and that's what it boils down to at the end of the day.

 

[devilalum]

The answer is: It depends on the deal.

 

[sunsfan88]

The answer is: It depends on the deal.

What if it was something like this?

http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=28z8xap

 

[elindholm]

Okay, I'll bite: What's the difference between the second and third options in your poll?

 

[Mainstreet]

If there was ever a player deserving of some respect it is Steve Nash. It's not a matter if the Suns just trade him, it's a matter that if Steve Nash were to be traded, the trade should not only benefit the Suns but Steve Nash as well. He should be a willing partner in the trade. I have yet to see any realistic trade proposal where the Suns get much of anything of value other than a late first round pick. Disposing of Steve Nash without getting something legitimate in return is ludicrous. He is the face of the Suns franchise not a piece of toilet paper.

As a side note, Dragic is not the answer at PG.

 

[sunsfan88]

If there was ever a player deserving of some respect it is Steve Nash. It's not a matter if the Suns just trade him, it's a matter that if Steve Nash were to be traded, the trade should not only benefit the Suns but Steve Nash as well. He should be a willing partner in the trade. I have yet to see any realistic trade proposal where the Suns get much of anything of value other than a late first round pick. Disposing of Steve Nash without getting something legitimate in return is ludicrous. He is the face of the Suns franchise not a piece of toilet paper.

As a side note, Dragic is not the answer at PG.

That's why we should sent him to Orlando cause their already a contender so Nash makes them even better. Plus we get some good young talent back.

And we get Nelson back so Dragic wouldn't have to start at PG.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I choose option 4, which isn't there BTW. I think we should have traded Nash the moment Amare moved on. Now, I really don't see all that much reason to move him unless a team makes a significant offer. With Nash we are a very mediocre team at best; without Nash, we're an embarrassingly bad team and I'm not sure moderate value would be enough to overcome that damage. For the most part, I'd let Nash decide his future.

Steve

 

[sunsfan88]

The Suns shoukd have got David Lee, Tyrus Thomas or Carlos Boozer when they had the chance.

 

[elindholm]

The Suns shoukd have got David Lee, Tyrus Thomas or Carlos Boozer when they had the chance.

You left out Duncan and Bryant.

 

[NoelPHX]

It is sad that we have some of the cheaper owners in all of sports as valley sports owners. We might not have won but we could always count on Jerry not letting the Suns get to this point. Oh well. Those days are gone.....

 

[Folster]

It is sad that we have some of the cheaper owners in all of sports as valley sports owners. We might not have won but we could always count on Jerry not letting the Suns get to this point. Oh well. Those days are gone.....

So are the days of under the table free agent deals. The current CBA tightened up a lot of loop holes that Jerry used to exploit. Most of our big free agent aquisitions in the past were done by signing a player two a small one-year contract with a wink and a promise that they would ink him to a big deal the following year. Manning, Green, and Tisdale are all examples of this. This past offseason was an anomaly as far as free agent movement. Usually, only a handful of teams have cap space in the offseason to sign players, and the player's current team always has the advantage of being able to offer the most money. When trades occur, outgoing and incoming salaries have to be within 25%. It's difficult to reshape your team with trades without taking back significant salary in return.

The most recent contender the Suns built was a result of an unbelievably fortunate trade with the Magic who held our 1st round pick in the 2002 NBA draft(we used that pick on Amare Stoudemire). I believe we sent Vinny Del Negro to the Magic for our pick back(crazy!). We also traded two solid pros in Rodney Rogers and Tony Delk for an unknown prospect named Joe Johnson. Then we sold high on Marbury which allowed us to dump Penny and his worthless contract. After that we overpaid(at the time) for Steve Nash and Quentin Richardson in free agency. There was a lot that went right in order to build that team

 

[jagu]

Jinxed him eh..

 

[sunsfan88]

Yea today's game against Dallas showed that Dragic is not the answer at PG.

Imagine what happens once Nash retires? We better trade him so we can get a true young PG for the future. I like Nelson but whether its him or someone else, we need to get ourselves a PG!

 

[Trifecta]

Yea today's game against Dallas showed that Dragic is not the answer at PG.

Imagine what happens once Nash retires? We better trade him so we can get a true young PG for the future. I like Nelson but whether its him or someone else, we need to get ourselves a PG!

Dragic is a decent PG (he did get a double-double tonight and often does when he fills in for Nash, in case you haven't noticed) but we can't slot him into Nash's spot at a moment's notice and expect no drop-off, because this team was put together to suit Nash's talents not Dragic's.

 

[sunsfan88]

Dragic is a decent PG (he did get a double-double tonight and often does when he fills in for Nash, in case you haven't noticed) but we can't slot him into Nash's spot at a moment's notice and expect no drop-off, because this team was put together to suit Nash's talents not Dragic's.

He plays well in garbage minutes. And also against the opposing team's bench.

Which is why I said he's a good maybe the best backup PG in the league but he's not starting material.

I'm also starting to think he's a better combo guard.

 

[sunsfan88]

You left out Duncan and Bryant.

Too bad Duncan and Bryant were never free agents or on the trade block the past few seasons.

Nice try. Please try again.

 

[Trifecta]

He plays well in garbage minutes. And also against the opposing team's bench.

Which is why I said he's a good maybe the best backup PG in the league but he's not starting material.

I'm also starting to think he's a better combo guard.

Well he's not Steve Nash I'll give you that. But he at least deserves a chance before we write him off as a potential starter. And a couple of games here and there when Nash is out isn't really enough to gauge his potential to fill the role IMO. Like I said this team was assembled to fit Nash's play style not Dragic's.

Dragic has gotten double figure assists a few times this season as a fill-in starter, in non-garbage minutes against other teams' starters, which should at least say something. And then there's last season when he torched the Spurs in the playoffs.

I just think there's a lot of other holes in our roster that need more urgent attention than PG (another backup would be nice though). I think bringing in a PF should be at the top of our list.

 

[jagu]

Yea today's game against Dallas showed that Dragic is not the answer at PG.

Imagine what happens once Nash retires? We better trade him so we can get a true young PG for the future. I like Nelson but whether its him or someone else, we need to get ourselves a PG!

The guy is running an offense built around one of the best point guards in the history of basketball and takes it and does pretty well and your knocking him? Wow... i think people need to realize that Steve Nash is not the norm. There aren't many Steve Nash's around, and in the future there will be but few and far between. Dragic is not Nash, and won't ever be Nash but the guy can run point in the NBA. Give him an offensive game plan, and let him play in it as a starter and he'll do well.

 

[Cheesebeef]

for the love of God, Ray Borque Steve Nash's ass to a title contender already. Have some class Sarver... whether Nash consciously says he wants a trade or not, everyone here KNOWS this team is screwed for a long time and he would be over-joyed for another shot at the title and anyone who believes otherwise has completely erased from their minds the fact that Nash has cried the last two times he was eliminated from the WCF.
_____________

 

[mojorizen7]

I also was looking for a 4th option. "Long overdue."

I've gone on record as having wanted to trade Nash the day after D'Antoni walked away. I felt that that era(and as a result...that whole D'Antoni/Nash/Fun n gun/no defense/SSOL just score system) should have ended. IMO that whole era had it's chance(challenging for the title).

It was an extremely succesful era in many ways,and Nash deserves all the respect in the world from PHX fans,....but again(objectively),i felt like after DA left, that the team should have gone in a different direction. Maybe not a full rebuild,but a decisive turnaround.
1) Kept Amare(in hopes of surrounding him with defensive talent).
2)Kept Shaq 1 more year(massive expiring to free up cap in order to go after some toughness in the frontcourt to compliment Amare)
3) Traded Nash to contender or a destination of his choice for good value.(which we would've gotten at that time.)
4) Traded Barbosa for good value(before he became an obvious product of the SSOL system)
5) Go get a defensive-minded backcourt player to do nothing but guard people.(Dahntay Jones was available)

Also,Dragic hasn't played enough consistent minutes for folks to decide he's not the answer. #13 is still eating up all the minutes here. If ya'll are looking for the next Nash don't hold your breathe....and(to be fair) by the same token i shouldn't hold my breathe hoping that this franchise will ever wake up and change the offensive culture here.

I felt the SUNS did a half-ass'ed job of recycling after DA. It would have been the perfect time to try and change the culture.

Moving Bell/Diaw for JRich/Duds was the last excellent move this team has made.

The assets to move forward aren't in place anymore. This team has no future.

 

[Chaplin]

Say what you will about Nash's age or Amare leaving, but I find it strange that you call the Suns "half-assed" after we made it to the Western Conference Finals last year.

Right now the future is bleak, but you can't just conveniently forget how successful the team has been in the past. It doesn't help much, but the whole "I told you so" attitude is counter-productive and doesn't really address the future.

 

[mojorizen7]

Say what you will about Nash's age or Amare leaving, but I find it strange that you call the Suns "half-assed" after we made it to the Western Conference Finals last year.

It was a nice run,but where are we now? I said it was a half-assed recycle job,meaning it was a tweak job that just put a band aid on the situation. If the SUNS had gone into a full rebuild mode 2 years ago that WCF run doesn't happen,so it's irrelevant in terms of disputing my opinion about 2008.

Right now the future is bleak, but you can't just conveniently forget how successful the team has been in the past. It doesn't help much, but the whole "I told you so" attitude is counter-productive and doesn't really address the future.

I acknowledged the success under DA and the SSOL years in my post Chap. I thought i made it clear that IMO after giving it our best shot it was just time to move forward and go in a different direction.

"I told you so attitude?" Me? Where is that coming from?

 

[sunsfan88]

Yea agreed. I bet no one was sayin all this crap about trading Nash once JJ, D'Antoni, or Marion when we went to the WCFs last year.

But unfortunately now its over. If Sarver wasnt a selfish idiot, he'd trade Nash & Hill and use the talent we get from that to build for the future. I want Steve to win a ring even if its wearing another jersey.

And to all those defending Dragic; What is the whole the offense isnt built for Dragic thing? You mean to say that Dragic is better in a half-court system? I highly doubt it. But I hope you guys are right. And maybe its just me but I dont think he likes Turkoglu much.

I used to think Dragic was a decent defender. He proved me wrong today. He's maybe worse than Nash.