Lakers guard and Suns legend Steve Nash has announced that he is retiring from basketball at the age of 41. In an essay for The Players' Tribune, Nash explained that it's simply time to walk away.
Nash is unquestionably one of the best point guards and shooters of all time, winning two MVPs and being selected to 8 All-Star Games. He finishes 3rd all-time in assists with 10,335 dimes.
Nash came to the Lakers on July 4th, 2012 via sign and trade to the tune of 3 year and about $28 million, and additionally the Lakers gave up four draft picks, including the one that the Lakers are currently in a close race to win top-5 protection on.
Over the three years he was under contract with the Lakers, Nash was only able to play in 65 games, averaging 11.4 points and 6.4 assists per game, shooting 42.2% from three. After breaking his leg early on in the 2012-2013 season, nothing was the same and he was never able to get back healthy. Obviously, the plan of a Nash/Kobe/Pau/Dwight core did not work out, in more ways than one.
On leaving the Lakers, Nash said, "There's a lot of class in Lakerland, and the organization and staff have given me unwavering support."
While this news is not exactly surprising, we'll have more on this development later on.