Poetry in Motion – A Steve Nash Story

[RMJH4]

Chapter 7: News I didn't expect.



February 2nd, 2001.

"Hey Dr Brennan, Mike Hobbs here, how you doing? Sorry I missed your call earlier."

“Hey Mike, nice to hear from you again. Look I'm afraid we got some bad news for you.

"I think we can make a deal that will help each other out. I thought I'd give you a call to see what you need."

“OK I'm listening Mike. What's the starting point?”

"Well as you know Marcus Camby is out for 4-6 weeks since our game. We need to bulk up our frontcourt and I'm looking at some of your guys to do that. Now I've also noticed you could do with some of our wing guys."

“Yea you're right Mike. I can see a nice blend of some of your guys with our guys. So who are you really after on our roster?”

"Well I think you'll be surprised here, but Big Country is a guy I think can be the backup for Ewing we've been looking for. He's been healthy this season so far."

''That's music to my ears Mike. Didn't think I would ever hear anyone say that. But I like how he has been playing this year for us. That final two seasons at over 10 million doesn't look as bad anymore.''

"You're right. Kind of how I see Larry Johnson having a bounce-back year for us. Been amazing of the bench, injury history, two years at over 10 million remaining.."

“For sure man. But I'm not sure if we would do a direct swap. Isaac Austin is a solid center, but he would be our only one if we make this deal. I do like the idea of LJ coming off the bench and adding some shooting beside Shareef though. Is there anyway we could add in somebody like a Kurt Thomas or Chris Dudley?”

"Well Kurt is an important guy for us, but I understand your concern. I can give you both Chris and Kurt, but I'd need something else back. That's a lot of salary with those two guys. Actually what about Felton Spencer?"

“OK decent guy, and some good names in there. I think we can come up with some combination. Just a quick enquiry though, what would it take to get Chris Childs? We need some depth behind Bibby and Dickerson., Chris could fit in very nicely.”

"I see. Chris has been very solid off the bench for us alright. I wouldn't be too happy to see him go. It will need to be a good offer. Like if you take Dudley off us, I could possibly put Chris in. But If I'm being honest, I'd like a draft pick. If we come up with a nice trade, I can definitely see you guys making the playoffs, so would you go Top 5 protected first round pick?"

“Well I'll need to think on that one. Based on our past history we can't really give that away. High chance we implode and drop into the lottery.”

"So lets forget about salaries for the moment then Billy. I want Bryant Reeves and a Top 5 protected draft pick, and you want a combo of LJ, Childs, Kurt Thomas or Dudley. Is that anywhere near acceptable?"

“ Not far off I'll be honest. If we were to add Chris, LJ and Kurt, I really like our playoff chances. Salary wise you'll need to take somebody else from us though.”

"I know. Who you willing to give up? Kevin Edwards your backup point guard?."

“Well just looking at my spreadsheet here. In order for us to pickup Childs, LJ and Kurt, we need to give you Bryant, Kev Edwards, Othella and maybe Doug West.”

"I see, what do you think of that for value? We get one of your starters, and you get our 3 best backups, all 3 can and have started games for us this season. If you give up a first rounder we can do this right now."

“I really want to make the playoffs this year, so I think I'll do it Mike. I'll try and run it past the owner. Thanks, I'll ring you back later on.”

"Always a pleasure Billy."

[RMJH4]

Game 12 Phoenix Suns 77 - 92 Portland Trailblazers



Nash and Felton went toe to toe tonight, with Nash and the Suns coming up short again.

Phoenix Suns at Portland Trailblazers
Jan 11, 2012	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Phoenix (5-6)	25	23	15	14	77
Portland (3-7)	30	33	13	16	92

Phoenix Suns
STARTERS	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
S. Nash	34	7-12	0-1	5-7	2	6	1	0	2	17

Portland Trailblazers

Suns Starters
S. Nash
J. Dudley
G. Hill
C. Frye
M. Gortat

Blazers Starters
R. Felton
J. Crawford
G. Wallace
L. Aldridge
M. Camby

Game Leaders
Pts - 22 - L. Aldridge (Blazers)
Rebs - 12 - M. Camby (Blazers)
Asts - 10 - R. Felton (Blazers)
Stls - 3 - J. Childress (Suns)
Blks - 2 - M. Camby (Blazers)

Nash's Notebook

“Disappointing loss after such a great performance against the Cavs. The Blazers had been struggling this season, but of course they upped their game against us. LaMarcus Aldridge was strong all night with 22 pts and 10 rebs. Marcus Camby another ageless vet had 12 rebs and 2 blocks. A difficult task to break down their post guys. Not for the first time this season we are having this problem. Raymond Felton was a tough matchup, almost matching my stat line. 17pts, 10 asts and 2 stls.”

"The X-Factors for the Blazers were their strength in depth on the wings. Gerald Wallace (9pts, 7 rebs) and Wes Matthews (10pts 4 rebs) scored, defended and crashed the boards all night. However Josh Childress played well for us, scoring 10 again and grabbing 5 rebs. 2 solid games in a row for him now. Marcin and Channing were kept very quiet, scoring and rebounding in single figures only. Markieff Morris though played well, scoring 10 pts and grabbing 7 boards. I got the feeling he is pushing hard for a start very soon. Even with Channing playing well, Morris is a stronger more athletic 4 man. I can run some nice pick and rolls with him. "

"5-7. Up and down, we are on a rollercoaster ride. Need to finish over .500 or the playoffs will be out of reach. We head home to face the Warriors who are in a similar position to us (4-6) before heading to Los Angeles to face the Lakers."

[RMJH4]

Game 13 Golden State Warriors 117 - 103 Phoenix Suns



Nash splits the D, but his 17 points and 10 assists were not enough to get the Suns a victory.

Golden State Warriors at Phoenix Suns
Jan 14, 2012	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Golden State (4-6)	30	27	29	31	117
Phoenix (5-7)	28	24	29	22	103

Golden State Warriors

Phoenix Suns
STARTERS	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
S. Nash	33	6-17	3-5	2-2	0	10	1	0	5	17

Warriors Starters
S. Curry
M. Ellis
D. Wright
D. Lee
E. Udoh

Suns Starters
S. Nash
J. Dudley
G. Hill
C. Frye
M. Gortat

Game Leaders
Pts - 35 - S. Curry (Warriors)
Rebs - 12 - M. Gortat (Suns)
Asts - 10 - S. Nash (Suns)
Stls - 3 - J. Childress (Suns)
Blks - 2 - R. Lopez (Suns)

Nash's Notebook

“What a great game! High paced run n'gun from both sides, but unfortunately the Warriors just had a little too much ammuntion for us. It was the Curry and Ellis show tonight in Phoenix. Curry almost had a triple-double with 35 points 9 rebounds and 9 assists. Ellis had 27 pts, 5 rebs, 5 asts and 2 stls. We just could not match their intensity or scoring power in the backcourt. Nate Robinson also chipped in with 12 pts off the bench too. What a lethal fast backcourt the W's have. Not to be outdone, Dorell Wright had 19 pts and David Lee had 12 pts. But they were very weak at center.”

"Marcin dominated inside and scored 10 pts to go along with his 12 rebounds. Markieff had 11 pts and 5 rebs, while Frye had 11 pts and 4 rebs. What a great battle those two guys are having for playing time right now. Our backcourt didnt want to be outdone by Curry and Ellis, and some guys really stepped up. Redd had 16 pts, Jared had 14 and Josh Childress had 10 again. Josh has really stepped up the last 3 games. He had 3 steals and 5 boards to boot too. "

"In the end we just couldnt get stops on their lightning quick guards. We matched up better in the post though. A loss but we played very well, score 103 against the Lakers and we might just win. Defense has got to improve mightily though, or we will get creamed.."

[RMJH4]

Game 14 Phoenix Suns 81 - 75 LA Lakers



Nash exposed the Lakers weakness tonight, scoring 26 points in a vintage performance.

Phoenix Suns at Los Angeles Lakers
Jan 17, 2012	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Phoenix (5-8)	19	15	22	25	81
Los Angeles (9-3)	13	17	23	22	75

Phoenix Suns
STARTERS	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
S. Nash	32	11-22	2-5	2-2	1	9	2	0	4	26

Los Angeles Lakers

Suns Starters
S. Nash
J. Dudley
G. Hill
C. Frye
M. Gortat

Lakers Starters
D. Fisher
K. Bryant
M. Barnes
P. Gasol
A. Bynum

Game Leaders
Pts - 26 - S. Nash (Suns)
Rebs - 12 - M. Gortat (Suns)
Asts - 9 - S. Nash (Suns)
Stls - 2 - S. Nash (Suns)
Blks - 2 - M. Gortat (Suns)

Nash's Notebook

“One of the biggest wins of my career right there! Went into Staples and earned a great victory. We played out of our skins defensively tonight, holding Kobe to 23 pts on 10-20 shooting. Jared Dudley and Grant Hill, take a bow! Outside of Kobe chucking some shots up, the Lakers really struggled offensively all night. Gasol who has been the subject of trade rumors ever since the CP3 vetoed trade, had 15 pts and 10 rebs. Bynum was rendered totally useless by Marcin, he scored a paltry 4 pts and grabbed 5 rebs. Derek Fisher hit 3 open 3's and turned the ball over 9 times. I had a field day against him.”

"I really like Fish, but his game has seriously declined this year. Without the triangle offense, D- Fish just has not been effective. The Lakers were 9-3 coming into this game, but largely down to Kobe having a few 30 pts games. Grant Hill had a stellar defensive game. 13pts, 10 rebs, 7 asts, 2 stls and a block. He made Kobe work damn hard. Jared Dudley was similarily excellent on defense against the Black Mamba, and also added 12 pts. But Josh Childress was an X- Factor off the bench with 12 pts tonight, finally we are gaining some bench scoring. Frye had 13 pts, and Morris had 8 pts. Marcin only scored 4 pts and grabbed 12 rebs, but his defense was magnificent against Bynum all night. "

"A superb road win against the Lakers. Their lack of a true PG and a strong 6th man (Lost Lamar Odom to the Mavericks) really hurt them. Childress is stepping up and with that we have a fighting chance..."

[RMJH4]

Game 15 Charlotte Bobcats 112 - 126 Phoenix Suns



Hand down, man down. Nash Drains a 3 in the 4th quarter.

Charlotte Bobcats at Phoenix Suns
Jan 20, 2012	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Charlotte (4-7)	32	38	14	28	112
Phoenix (6-8)	38	34	26	28	126

Charlotte Bobcats

Phoenix Suns
STARTERS	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
S. Nash	33	7-19	1-2	9-10	3	9	1	0	1	20

Bobcats Starters
K. Walker
G. Henderson
C. Maggette
T. Thomas
B. Mullens

Suns Starters
S. Nash
J. Dudley
J. Childress
C. Frye
M. Gortat

Game Leaders
Pts - 23 - C. Maggette (Bobcats)
Rebs - 10 - M. Gortat (Suns)
Asts - 6 - S. Nash (Suns)
Stls - 4 - J. Dudley (Suns)
Blks - 2 - B. Mullens (Bobcats)

Nash's Notebook

“2 in a row! Another similar game to the Warriors, we really shot the lights out tonight. Defense went out the window again though, and back to the old Suns philosophy of we'll score more than you! 126 points is a crazy high score for 4 quarters. But when you have 7 guys in double figures, its always a possibility.”

"Markieff Morris played some more time at the 4 tonight, and was excellent in the extended minutes. 22 points and 8 rebounds from the rookie. We ran some great pick and rolls, and most of my 6 assists went to him on alley oops. It gave coach Gentry and our fans an insight into what happens when i've got some athletic big men to run that play with. Michael Redd was also superb tonight and drilled 19 points. Grant Hill had 15 along with 7 rebs, in another solid performance. Grant felt he had to prove a point tonight, as Josh Childress was given his first start ahead of him. Childress was solid again though and also scored 15pts. Marcin had 13 points and 10 rebounds, another double-double for the Polish hammer. "

"The Bobcats were also trigger happy tonight. Maggette had 23, Kemba Walker 19, DJ Augustin 18, Tyrus Thomas 17 and Gerald Henderson 16. A very balanced attack. The Bobcats will struggle against a lot of teams this year, as their defense was non existent for most of the game."

"Another good win, we now stand 7-8. Off tomorrow night, and then we play the Magic at home. Dwight Howard and the media circus come to town, the Magic lead the east with a 13-3 record ahead of the Hawks. Despite all the trade rumors around Dwight, the Magic have started the season strong."

[RMJH4]

Game 16 Orlando Magic 102 - 92 Phoenix Suns



Nash tried his best to keep the Suns close late.

Orlando Magic at Phoenix Suns
Jan 22, 2012	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Orlando (13-3)	24	20	32	26	102
Phoenix (7-8)	20	24	22	26	92

Orlando Magic

Phoenix Suns
STARTERS	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
S. Nash	35	7-12	3-4	1-2	1	8	1	0	6	18

Magic Starters
J. Nelson
J. Richardson
H. Turkoglu
R. Anderson
D. Howard

Suns Starters
S. Nash
J. Dudley
G. Hill
C. Frye
M. Gortat

Game Leaders
Pts - 28 - D. Howard (Magic)
Rebs - 11 - D. Howard (Magic)
Asts - 8 - S. Nash (Suns)
Stls - 5 - H. Turkoglu (Magic)
Blks - 2 - D. Howard (Magic)

Nash's Notebook

“Another loss tonight to one of the NBA's best. Only losing by 10 pts, even though we were outplayed, was a decent achievement. The Magic have been in excellent form so far this season, with Dwight Howard playing out of his skin, despite the trade rumors daily. His 28 pt and 11 rebound performance helped lead them in so many ways. Former Sun J-Rich stepped up and had 20 pts too. Nelson had 13 pts, 5 rebs and 4 asts. He has started the season strong, back to his allstar form of two years ago. Ryan Anderson has also been excellent this season, only scoring 11 tonight, but really stretching the floor well for them.”

"Our two former Magic men, Gortat and Hill had great games. Marcin didnt want to be overshadowed by Dwight. He had 14 pts, 10 rebs, 5 asts and a block. He was only a backup for Orlando, but he is certainly a worthy starter here. Grant had 12 pts, 4 rebs, 4 asts, 2 stls and a block too, another great all around performance by Grant. He always makes the Magic wonder what would have been if he had been fit to play alongside T-Mac. "

"Michael Redd had 14 points off the bench and is really hitting his stride now. Josh Childress lost his starting role tonight, but still contributed well with 9 points and 6 rebounds. Some good consistent play by Josh. Overall the Magic had too many scorers for us, and I feel they deservedly won out."

"We are really struggling right now to be consistent. But we are at home again next against the Jazz, before heading out on the road to face the Thunder."

[RMJH4]

Game 17 Utah Jazz 99 - 88 Phoenix Suns



Nash strolls inside for the easy deuce. Not the only time this happened tonight.

Utah Jazz at Phoenix Suns
Jan 24, 2012	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Utah (7-11)	27	17	22	33	99
Phoenix (7-9)	17	16	24	31	88

Utah Jazz

Phoenix Suns
STARTERS	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
S. Nash	33	6-12	1-2	5-5	1	6	1	0	3	18

Jazz Starters
D. Harris
CJ. Miles
J. Howard
P. Millsap
A. Jefferson

Suns Starters
S. Nash
J. Dudley
G. Hill
C. Frye
M. Gortat

Game Leaders
Pts - 21 - J. Howard (Jazz)
Rebs - 12 - M. Gortat (Suns)
Asts - 7 - D. Harris (Jazz)
Stls - 3 - J. Dudley (Suns)
Blks - 3 - M. Gortat (Suns)

Nash's Notebook

“We are just not making the US Airways Center a difficult place for road teams to play in. Giving up games regularly here, this has got to stop. It was a major battle in the post tonight. As usual Al Jefferson (19pts and 11 rebs) and Paul Millsap (14 pts and 9 rebs) were a handful for us. Devin Harris was strong too, and helped his team get going on offense. His 16 pts and 7 assists were vital. CJ Miles had a strong 13 points showing, but Josh Howard stole the spotlight, with his 21 pt performance.”

"Our two big men were not backing down in the post. Marcin and Channing gave as good as they got inside. Marcin had 14 pts and 11 rebs, with 3 superb blocks too. Channing had 12 pts and 9 rebs, with a steal and a block also. Our wings contributed fairly well on offense. Grant , Josh and Michael all scored 9 pts each. But for once their defence let them down. Allowing Howard and CJ Miles to put up big numbers. "

"Its disappointing to watch other teams close out wins against us, particularly with us playing at home. Something needs to be done. I just cant quite put my finger on it though."

"We are 7-10 and its a slippery slope from here. With the Thunder up next in OKC, there appears to be a mountain range between us and .500. I have a meeting tonight with Rob Sarver about a possible contract extension, better get showered and suited up. Grant is in there after me, but I might have a quick word to see if he wants to join in my meeting."

[RMJH4]

Nash's Notebook

January 24th



"Contract extension deadline is tomorrow, but realistically I dont think they even expect me to sign. I have a few things I want to get off my chest though, try and get things moving around here."

Sarver: Come in Steve.

Nash: Hey Rob, Lon. Another bad loss tonight.

Babby: Yeah very disappointing. Hoping we can pick one up on the road to OKC.

Nash: You really think that’s a possibility? Like seriously?

Babby: Well the Thunder have really been struggling this season, they are 5-7 at the moment. I think we can surprise them.

Nash: Yeah listen I admire your optimism Lon, but we have to play out of our skins for that to happen. And we have done that a few times this season already. But OKC have too many weapons. I can’t see us grabbing the win.

Sarver: Anyway guys let’s get down to business. Steve we would like to give you an open invitation to remain a Phoenix Sun as long as you would like.

Nash: Thanks. Phoenix is where I want to be. It would be nice to retire here, but…

Babby: But what?

Nash: It would be nice to compete well in the playoffs again before I retire. A chance for a championship ring might be a stretch, but I want to feel like it’s a possibility here. At the moment, we’ll have to play a lot better to make the playoffs. Maybe that won’t even be enough. We’re just a piece or 2 short though. I think I can get us into the playoffs, but it would be difficult to avoid being bounced by the Clippers, Mavericks or Thunder in the first round.

Sarver: Yes it would be a great way to finish your career, and I would love for the Suns to give you that chance at a championship. But at the moment we are pretty stretched by the cap. I really don’t want to spend too much more, so avoiding going into the tax is a priority.

Nash: Well are you going to low ball me with an offer then?

Babby: Well we’d like to think we’d get a little hometown discount…

Nash: Well that’s a possibililty, but I have one or two things I want to see happen around here first.

Sarver: Go on.

Nash: Well I’d be happy to stay here for a reasonable contract. Say 5 mil per. But I want to see us go after some guys. Get rid of some of the deadweight around here.

Babby: Ok, so now like Dwight Howard you have a list? Great. Real fresh Steve.

Nash: Listen Lon, I think you are a good guy. But I will be honest and say I feel your moves in the last 2 seasons have sent us into a downward spiral.

Babby: Hey listen Steve, you can’t talk to me like that, you’re a player, I’m the president of basketball operations here, I could just trade your *** off to any old scrub team for some nice young pieces, and start a decent rebuild. How’s that for clearing some deadweight.

Sarver: Lon, Steve cut it out. Things are tough right now, but I don’t want this bad-mouthing of each other. Look Steve you have a point, we have made some moves we regret. We spent money in places it probably shouldn’t have been spent. But that’s basketball. That’s life. We want to slowly rebuild a solid team. We have some nice pieces like Marcin, and the young kid Morris. We want to build a culture.

Nash: And what else? Let’s be honest here guys, myself and Grant are nearing the end of our careers, but we can still contribute to a winning team. We want to make this a winning team. But right now we need a change of personnel. Now I’m no GM, I’ll admit that, but I think we can all agree not resigning Amar’e was a mistake. Yes we brought back all our great bench from the last big run, but Amar’e was key. We spent almost as much on the other guys. Look at him now, living it up in New York. He wanted to stay here. You know that, Lon knows that, and I know that. Grant will tell you the very same here when I’m done.

Sarver: Yeah hindsight is a wonderful thing. But he was too much of a risk, we couldn’t get insurance on a contract.

Nash: He wanted a near max contract, and you didn’t offer anything near that. Look you can undo some of the recent mistakes. Give the Knicks a call about him. They need some defence, we have some nice pieces they may be interested in.

Babby: We can try, but I can guarantee Marcin will have to be included.

Nash: Well he would be a big loss, but if we can get Amar’e, I know we can re-ignite that magic for another playoff run. I mean in this lockout shortened season, anything can happen, just got to roll the dice guys.

Sarver: We’ll see what we can do. What if they don’t want to listen? What other changes are you looking for?

Nash: Basically Stoudemire 2.0. There are some decent guys out there that I think can thrive here with me and Grant. Tyrus Thomas. Josh Smith. Paul Millsap. JJ Hickson. Serge Ibaka. Derrick Williams. Michael Beasley.

Babby: I’d pass on most of those, Josh Smith and Paul Millsap might just be available. Williams and Beasley though, really?

Nash: Well oodles of potential there, surrounded by vets, they could thrive here.

Sarver: I’m not sure they would help us win now, but Williams went to college in Arizona, and could get some butts in seats. Beasley can score in bunches, might just be what we need.

Nash: Well I want you to look into those guys. Another thing, the dropoff in production behind me is appalling. I hate bad-mouthing players but Sebastian and Ronnie just aren’t going to cut it. They cannot effectively run the offense. I know another former Arizona Wildcat who could play a role for us, at least until Aaron Brooks gets back. We should have a look at Gilbert.

Babby: Yeah we are on the same wave length here Steve. Going to contact him about a workout today. I know our medical staff can appeal to him. Help him out with those knees.

Nash: Ok guys, I’ll leave you to it. A few little changes and we’ll talk. I know there isn’t any point signing an extension, because it will only hinder us in free agency. But I will give you my word, make some of these changes, and I will resign for less than 5 mil next year.

Sarver: Great stuff Steve, get home to your kids, it’s getting late man.