Steve Nash says his deal with Los Angeles Lakers only became possible after Kobe Bryant agreed – NBA News
Steve Nash will take the court next season in very familiar territory.
As a member of the Phoenix Suns, Nash had many fierce battles with the Los Angeles Lakers for the Western Conference throne. Come October, the iconic point guard will see himself starting as the floor general of the very same team
that once considered him a thorn in their path of Western Conference supremacy.
Nash was on “The Burns and Gambo Show” on KTAR in Phoenix and said that his decision was made much easier by the fact that Lakers star player Kobe Bryant was open to the idea and gave his nod of approval.
“Well, it definitely needed (Bryant's) blessing. I primarily did this for the kids, and then a great by product is that I get to play for a contender. It was great that (Bryant) signed off and he was so enthusiastic about it and
positive. You could feel it. He was genuine and excited, and that kind of sealed the deal,” said Nash.
Nash further revealed that the decision of joining the Lakers was not an easy one for him, as he had spent so many years and season preparing to face them in the playoffs as the potential enemy. Being on that team all of a sudden
seemed to be a difficult thing to do.
Nash also said that he felt the Phoenix Suns fans considered the Lakers as their prime enemies, denying the team a few chances of reaching the NBA Finals. However, he knew he needed to go to a new team after the Suns decided to
go in another direction after a dismal season which saw them not make it to the playoffs for a second consecutive season.
Nash says he wanted to come back to Phoenix and put the team back into the playoffs before moving on, but felt that his time with the Suns was now over.
"I wanted to come back, to be honest. I felt dissatisfied with the last two seasons, not being in the playoffs. And I felt a big part of me wanted to leave the franchise in a better place than it was the last two seasons,” said
Nash.
Steve also revealed that had the sign and trade deal that landed him in Hollywood fallen off, he would have either signed with the Toronto Raptors or the New York Knicks, the next two teams that were fighting for his attention.
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