Steve Nash One Of The All-Time Great PG’s
Now that Steve Nash has officially retired from basketball, how does he rank in terms of the greatest point guards in NBA history? The 41-year old point guard quietly announced his retirement from the NBA on Friday. According to a Fox Sports report, he cited various injuries, including a back and leg problems, as the primary reason why he is walking away from the game.
Only playing in 65 games over the last three seasons, Nash felt that it was time. He submitted a letter to the Player’s Tribune.
“I’m retiring.
I heard someone once say there comes a day when they tell us all that we can’t play anymore. We’re not good enough. Surplus to requirements. Too slow, maybe. When you’re a teenager with outsized dreams and a growing obsession, and someone tells you this ain’t gonna last forever, it’s scary. I never forgot it.”
Fans have not seen Nash play in over a year. With his best days behind him, Nash joined the Los Angeles Lakers where he played alongside Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard in the 2012-13 season. That team finished with a 45-37 record, making the playoffs. It was the only time Steve Nash made the playoffs as a member of the Lakers.
Prior to joining Los Angeles, Nash won two MVP awards with the Phoenix Suns. It was there that he earned the reputation of one of the NBA’s greatest playmakers.
Now that he has retired, where does Steve Nash stack up in a league that has had a history of astute point guards?
Having not won an NBA Championship, he must not be considered in the top-four of all-time point guards. Isiah Thomas, Jerry West, Magic Johnson, and Oscar Robertson are all ahead of Nash.
Hall of Famer John Stockton also ranks ahead of him, having played in two NBA Finals. Had it not been for the Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen-led Chicago Bulls, many believe that Stockton’s Utah Jazz would have at least one championship.
Another point guard, Jason Kidd, has a title on his resume, he is on par when you discuss him or Nash. Kidd was just as good as a distributor of the basketball as Nash was, Kidd was the better defender, Nash the better shooter.
There is a name whom many will debate about whether or not he was a true point guard – Allen Iverson.
If the ball-dominant Iverson is considered a lead guard, then we have a totally different discussion to consider. Given his size, or lack of size and his scoring ability, Iverson surpasses Nash. That would place the recent retiree eighth of the greatest PG’s, just behind Kidd. If Iverson gets the nod of a shooting guard, Nash jumps up to seventh.
Wherever you have him, the recently retired Steve Nash is among the top-10 NBA point guards of all-time. Not a bad career for a former soccer player.
[Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images]
