Steve Nash will go down as one of the best point guards the NBA has ever seen. Unfortunately, the two-time Most Valuable Player has dealt with injuries in his stint with the Los Angeles Lakers.
— Think You Know Everything About The 2000’s Lakers? Take The Ultimate Fan Quiz! —
Nash recently spoke with Nate Scott from USA Today to promote his partnership with travel concierge Beck & Score for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In the phone conversation, Nash talked about how these injuries have affected him:
I felt like with injuries and the place I was in, I felt like my game was disappearing without any warning, and it put me in a really dark place. It may sound superficial, but it made me feel scared and anxious.
With his career coming to an end, Nash compares this situation to a death:
[A lot of people] never got that severance, a time to grieve and say goodbye, it really is like a death. You’re so passionate about it, you put so much energy and drive into it and then, all of a sudden, it’s just gone.
Signing a three-year, $27 million contract with the Lakers in 2012, his last years with the purple and gold have been nothing but a disappointment for the most part.
At the age of 40, the two-time MVP has only been able to play 65 games in the past two seasons. As a starter and role player this season, Nash averaged 6.8 points and 5.7 assists in 20.9 minutes.
Nash is currently in the final year of his contract where he is set to receive $9.7 million. While the Lakers have the stretch provision available, they won’t likely use it on Nash. Although Nash acknowledged the Lakers can’t rely on him, he can still be a valuable piece off the bench or even as a mentor if the team drafts a point guard.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
NBA History: Lakers Steve Nash Moves Into 3rd All-Time Assists, Mark Jackson Tweets