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Los Angeles Lakers’ trade for Steve Nash finally ending in 2018 NBA Draft

By Donny McHenry

LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 4: Steve Nash #10 of the Los Angeles Lakers handles the ball against the Dallas Mavericks at Staples Center on April 4, 2014 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2014 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 4: Steve Nash #10 of the Los Angeles Lakers handles the ball against the Dallas Mavericks at Staples Center on April 4, 2014 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2014 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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The Los Angeles Lakers trade for Steve Nash did not work out in 2012 and it will finally come to an end during the 2018 NBA Draft.

The NBA Draft Lottery was on May 15th and for the first time in 4 years, Los Angeles Lakers fans didn’t have to tune in to find out the fate of where their lottery pick will land. Their only first round pick comes from the Cleveland Cavaliers, and will be the No. 25 overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft.

You may be thinking, “I don’t remember the Lakers trading their 2018 first round pick?” The thanks (or the blame) for that can go to the trade the Lakers made in 2012 to acquire Steve Nash from the Phoenix Suns.

Very Substantial Package for Nash

The ramifications of that trade for the Lakers were still being felt on lottery night, as the Philadelphia 76ers received the rights to the 10th overall pick of the draft as a result of that Steve Nash trade in 2012.

In that trade, the Phoenix Suns received first rounders in 2013 and 2015 in addition to second rounders in 2013 and 2014, all from the Lakers. All of that was for Nash who would only play in 65 games over two seasons for the Lakers as he dealt with many injury problems towards the end of his career.

What about the other end of that deal, the four picks sent over to the Suns? Pete Zayas, a.k.a. Laker Film Room on Twitter explained how the final pick made it’s way all the way to the 2018 draft.

This article from Business Insider talks about where the other three picks landed and what they resulted in. The other three ended up as the 2013 30th overall pick, the 2013 57th overall pick, and the 2014 36th overall pick. There were actually a couple interesting connections to the present day Lakers as a result of the picks continuously moving around.

The 2013 30th overall pick ended up being used in a package for the rights of Tyler Ennis, while the 2013 57th overall pick was used to eventually trade for Isaiah Thomas. As for how that 2018 pick ended in the Sixers hands, the Suns actually traded it in a three team trade that gave the Suns Brandon Knight. That trade didn’t necessarily work out in the Suns favor.

Time to Reminisce for the Lakers

Looking back on it you may be thinking about the past Lakers brass and their sanity for trading all of those picks for Steve Nash. At the time, however, the trade was considered to be putting the Lakers back in title contention.

Nash was being brought in with Dwight Howard to go along with Pau Gasol to try and get Kobe Bryant his 6th ring before he retired. It seemed like a great move at the time, as the Lakers were overly hyped up before the season began.

It even birthed one of the most infamous NBA magazine covers of all time, the “Now This is Going to be Fun” Sports Illustrated cover with Nash and Howard.

It obviously was not fun. The Lakers’ head coach at the time, Mike Brown, was fired after a 1-4 start. He was replaced by current Houston Rockets coach, Mike D’Antoni, but his developed chemistry with Kobe Bryant from Team USA and with Nash from their Phoenix Suns days couldn’t overcome Nash and Howard’s injury problems and just overall aging across the entire roster. The Lakers finished 45-37 in that season and lost in the first round after barely making it in.

The Dwightmare ended after one season, as he left to sign with the Houston Rockets. Nash retired after two years with the Lakers. Reoccurring nerve damage in his back caused him to miss the rest of his final 2013-14 season after only playing 15 games.

The Nash trade was the beginning of the end for general manager Mitch Kupchak and executive vice president Jim Buss. A few years later they put the nail in their own coffins by signing Timofey Mozgov and Luol Deng to a combined $136 million which were not good moves, to say the least.

Once the 76ers make that pick in the draft, the Lakers can put all of that trade behind them. The poor decision-making from Kupchak and Buss still exist, however, as Deng’s contract is still on the books. Mozgov was traded, along with D’Angelo Russell, before the 2017 NBA Draft to the Brooklyn Nets.

Once Deng’s contract is either over, traded, or stretched over multiple years to provide more yearly cap space, we will still be thinking about those fateful decisions by Lakers’ management that all started with that Nash trade.

Cautiousness in Current Day Operations for Lakers

It all has given the Lakers warranted cautiousness to decisions made by new Lakers’ brass, president of basketball operations Magic Johnson and general manager Rob Pelinka.

One move that has been heavily rumored for the Lakers is trading assets for Kawhi Leonard, who didn’t play much last year due to a controversial quad injury. Kawhi and the Spurs may have a strained relationship because of it, leading to many trade rumors.

More from Lake Show Life

Many Lakers fans are very excited about the idea of getting the former Finals MVP in a trade, even if it means parting ways with Kyle Kuzma, Brandon Ingram, or other young Lakers players. I have noticed however that some Lakers fans are scared of the idea.

The idea of trading for Kawhi brings back memories for some Lakers fans of the Nash and Dwight trades; a trade for a superstar that will maybe have, or have already had, continued injury problems. Another concerning aspect of a trade for Kawhi is his impending 2019 free agency, where he could play for the Lakers for one year and leave just like Dwight did.

Personally, I think the Kawhi situation is far different than the Nash situation and that Kawhi is in a way better place than where Howard was at the time. Howard actually averaged 20.6 PPG and 14.5 RPG the season before he came to the Lakers, but he was coming off back surgery. Those back problems definitely seemed to follow him to L.A., as he didn’t seem like his old self.

It is unknown right now what the extent of Kawhi’s quad injury is, but I’d say that back problems early in a career are more concerning than quad problems. Also, Kawhi is an All-NBA forward in the league. That is much more valuable than a possible All-Star Center, so he would be more worth the risk.

Still, my optimism for trading for Kawhi won’t sway nervous Lakers fans who can’t forget the Nash and Dwight predicament. Either way, you have to think Magic and Pelinka would carefully inspect Kawhi’s injury before they traded away hard earned young players for him.

Next: Los Angeles Lakers: 5 Possible Outcomes This Offseason

It’s interesting to see how that Nash trade is still impacting the Lakers 5 years later, directly with our draft picks, but also indirectly with possible hesitation for future trades.

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