Steve Nash talks Dwight, MWP, D’Antoni
By Jacob Rude
March 25, 2013; Oakland, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers point guard Steve Nash (10) looks on during the fourth quarter against the Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Lakers 109-103. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Steve Nash has been labeled a consummate professional his whole career. Throughout the entire Dwight saga, he’s remained quiet and to himself. Tuesday on the Mason and Ireland show, he spoke publicly for the first time since Dwight’s decision.
“Frankly, I thought before the meeting we didn’t have a chance,” Nash said. “I’d like to think after the meeting we had a chance. Ultimately, Dwight wasn’t comfortable here and didn’t want to be here. We wish him the best and move on.”
Nash then put Howard on blast a little bit, questioning his move to Houston.
“He didn’t seem to want to run a pick-and-roll offense maybe because he had run one in Orlando for so long and wanted to get in the post more,” Nash said. “Now Houston runs a pick-and-roll offense. I go back to feeling a little unlucky this year cause we were all unhealthy and the year came and went with use ceremoniously dumped out of the playoffs and here we are rebuilding.
Howard and the Lakers struggled mightily throughout the season, both as a team and with injuries. When asked what happened last year with Dwight, Nash tried to break down where things went wrong.
“I think you gotta preface everything when talking about last season with the fact that Dwight wasn’t himself,” Nash said. “He was well below 100%. Pau wasn’t his self until the late in the season. I wasn’t my self after I broke my foot. This league’s too good with too much of a deficit when we’re trying to find that commonality and that chemistry. That leads to whatever difficulty to assimilating we had.”
Despite the Lakers strong finish last year, Nash still felt like the Lakers never truly clicked last year.
“I really don’t feel like we ever really played at a high level,” Nash said. “Yeah, we won at a high level, but i don’t think we ever did feel comfortable or confident out there. We were winning games and scrapping and fighting and turning around, but we never found that commonality. We never found that confidence as a team.”
Nash was asked about the possibility of losing a teammate like Metta World Peace, who is rumored to be amnestied soon.
“I don’t know the business side as well as others, it’s tough to lose a guy like that,” Nash said. “He’s a tough, hard-nosed player and a great teammate. You never want to see a guy like that go.”
Next, Mason and Ireland asked Nash to defend head coach Mike D’Antoni against the rabid Lakers fan base.
“I think he’s a very bright coach,” Nash said. “He’s not without flaws, but none of us are. We all should be judged by the fans, I think we got a lot to prove because last year was, to me, a disaster in a lot of ways. I love passionate fans. I love the Lakers fans base because of that. I love that they’re heated and opinionated. That’s what’s exciting about this year: we got a lot to play for.”