Taking your best shot sometimes doesn't work out; time to move on

All right, everyone calmed down a little bit?

Steve Nash is a Laker, a bit surprising, a bit out of nowhere but it’s done and, finally, the saga is over.

Good for him.

Closer to his family (he shares custody of three kids and is an hour flight away), with an exponentially better chance to win a ring (hands up all of you who were clamouring for him to demand a trade to a contender the last two years as a fitting denouement to his career) and for about an $8 million haircut on the Raptors offer ($28 million according the Arizona Republic against $36 million in Toronto according to ESPN.com).

Good for him.

Life factors, chance to win, no holding one against the other for more money. What’s to complain about?

Look, we’ll never know how serious he was about listening to Toronto’s pitch (his agent, Bill Duffy said after the fact he’d have been okay with either Toronto or New York but I’m skeptical) but doesn’t it really matter?

The Raptors saw what they thought they wanted and went after it. You can’t blame Bryan for trying, can you? Guy gave it his best shot, loaded an offer financially, made it all glitzy and sweet and was told no. What’s wrong with that? That’s his fault?

It’s not a repudiation of Canada – that’s so trite it should be dismissed out of hand; it’s not a repudiation of Toronto – 100 NBA free agents given the choice of the Lakers team and this Raptors team would take this Lakers team 100 times; if anything, it’s a repudiation of a team that’s been out of the playoffs for four years and needs to get closer to respectability before it can make a bold move like this.

No, you can’t blame a GM for trying; perhaps the only thing you can do is think, ‘okay, what’s next?’ And seeing how little has worked out of late, that’s fair comment. The pressure’s on him to do something to make the team better, a big trade most likely since the free agent market’s really limited right now but that’s to discuss here later today because I have to have something to do with my day.

Can he do something significant to make the team significantly better? The next few days will tell; history would suggest the answer is no, I’m willing to wait and see because, well, because what else is there to do?

But, really, what did this whole Nash thing cost the Raptors?

Some time.

That’s it.

It’s not like a gaggle of legitimate free agent prospects signed while they were waiting (and you should thank your lucky stars Goran Dragic went to Phoenix over night for something like $30 million over four years); it’s not like they still don’t have money to spend either on a free agent or in taking on salary in trade because they still do.

And, no matter what you might think, it’s not as if Bryan and Ed and the rest of Henchman have been twiddling their thumbs since Sunday. They’ve been talking and now they can act, knowing the landscape once and for all.

Look, the Steve Nash thing came down to this:

They made a great offer and went all-in and it didn’t work out for a variety of reasons real and perceived. Tough noogies. Time to move on.

It’s not like they can, or should, throw their hands in the air and give up, there’s a roster to build, games to play and a future to worry about.

No pity parties.

For anyone.

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Totally missed this yesterday in the whole Andy Griffiths thing but an alert reader from Hazelville pointed it out.

Ben Davidson, a great football player and perhaps even a greater TV pitchman/thespian passed away.

Young ‘un aren’t likely to have any idea who he is, nor what he did on TV but, I tell you, there wasn’t much better than the series of Miller Lite commercials way back in the day.

If there is such a thing, they were destination viewing, weren’t they?

RIP Ben.

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Mail?

That’d be nice. Promise I’ll do some Nash but not too much, think everything you need to know is explained here.

You know the drill.

Click. Write. Send. Even if you have to do it in code.

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Hey, Seamheads?

Steve Nash vs. Yu Darvish.

Discuss.

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Look at yesterday this way:

No one here even paid a bit of attention to Dwight Howard.

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So, what’s up for the HOTH?

Well, they won’t get Dragic (no big loss), doesn’t look like they’ll get Lin (he’ll shop himself, Knicks wlll assuredly match whatever offer he gets) and all of that is fine with me.

However, the trouble is, and we’ll discuss this is more detail later, Dragic leaving the Rockets and Lin probably going back to New York takes Lowry out of play.

Too bad; of the three I liked him best as part of a succession plan, post-Jose, who is as good, if not better, than any of them.

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One last word on a rather hectic Wednesday.

You know my feelings on the need for immediacy in reporting, even if it’s not confirmed, and the insatiable need of people to have information now, if not sooner.

Well, it was a perfect case in point, watching the Nash thing unfold from about noon on.

He was going to New York, he was still toying with Dallas, the Raptors weren’t giving up; it seemed every 30 minutes there was some breathless update. And some of it might even have been right.

We rush too much, as a craft, as a society, and it causes untold stress and angst and, yes, work.

I’m not going to tilt at windmills and shake my head and roll my eyes because it’s a losing battle. We are where we are; I don’t particularly like it but if you don’t adapt, you get left behind and no one gets left behind.

But I still think it’s prudent to take a few minutes to provide context, to check information, to take a deep breath before any sky-is-falling or this-is-done proclamations.

Yes, the way it is now makes for interesting times, but a lot of wasted time. It isn’t right, but it’s the way it is, I guess.

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Comments

[Mike Smith]

Doug, do you think Steve Nash might have been irked that Colangelo offered Fields a contract in an effort to block a Knicks sign-and-trade deal? I know that if I was considering working for either Company A or Company B, and Company A did something to make it harder for me to work for Company B, I would not be pleased. Perhaps this Colangelo trickery influenced Nash's decision to go to the Lakers, because the whole being-close-to-Phoenix business certainly was not an issue before July 1 and over the weekend when the huge Raptors offer was made. Either that or Nash used the Raptors to drive up his value, knowing well he would never sign here.

Blogger's note: Had no impact whatsoever

[Heath]

Pick and roll with Howard in LA next year? Sorry, I had to start the hype.

[Diego]

In one of those "what if" moments, what if the Bobcats wouldn't have pulled the plug on the trade of Chandler to the Raps? Of the multitude of "what if", that's one of the most intriguing, IMO.

[Canadian Paul]

Hi Doug, while I have no problem with Nash going to the Lakers, it seems that all Canadian writers are trying to bring down the level of anger among the fans by saying that he wanted to be closer to his kids. Well, if that were the case, what was he doing negotiating with the Knicks to the detriment of the Raptors? Yes, the Lakers situation is better than anything the Raptors can offer, but the fact that the Raptors came in 4th out of 4 teams chasing him tells you all you need to know about Steve Nash.

Blogger's note: What's it tell you? That he sacrificed an awful lot of money and a chance to play in NY and a chance to play in Canada for family reasons and to play for a better team? Yeah, tells you everything and I have no issues with it at all. This ain't a charity; this is a big business.

[Tim]

Too bad it looks like the Raps are going to miss out on Nash and Lowry. At least we still have Calderon for this year though.

[dean]

Here is all you need to know about this whole process and how absurd it is that Steve Nash even entertained an offer from Toronto, and furthermore, actually how absurd it is that he even EVER thought about accepting it. Directly from Bill Duffy, Nash's agent to SI.com........

"The whole predicate was to put him in position to be as close to his family as possible and in the most competitive situation possible," Duffy told SI.com. "Both were accomplished, and then he wanted to make sure that the Suns got value for his departure because (Suns owner Robert) Sarver has been good to him and they've had a great relationship. That was very important to Steve. In his mind, it's a win-win-win."

Duffy states in the first sentence of the quote that NY and Toronto were not even on his radar. It was either Dallas or LA, thats it, no other choices. So instead of being up front, now BC has made a 20 million dollar error that is going to be brutal to this club in year 3 for sure.Duffy used us as leverage to get the best deal possible for Nash, well done. Colangelo misread the whole thing and thought Nash was actually interested in coming here. Not true. Not true by a longshot, and openly admitted to by Bill Duffy.

How is it that almost every year LA can trade a bag or horse manure for an All Star???Are Lon Babby and Robert Sarver insane, or are they on a 5 year plan that makes them better AFTER Kobe and Nash retire??

Please Larry, put Bryan out of his misery and take the old horse behind the barn. He has suffered so much, I cannot see how he has one ounce of confidence in his ability to perform the job that he does.

Lets see how Colangelo can spin this July 12th. Here are the buzzwords you will hear ----- "maintain flexibitlity.......oraganic growth....maturation as a team......change the culture.......more organic growth........ugh !!! Its like a record that never gets flipped over. Much like my ranting. Hate me or not, BC is not a good GM, prove me wrong.

[TLI]

So Bryan asks The Great One to join in the pitch to Steve Nash. Wayne obliges: "Stevie, you gotta do for basketball in Canada what I did for hockey in the States... go to L.A., dude, it's the bomb!!"

[David in Oakville]

After all those years of Steve helping his teammates make max contracts (Amar'e, Marion) it sure seems like BC just helped Steve to a bigger contract (dollars and years) than he might have received otherwise.
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If we lost, how does Mark Cuban feel? He gutted his championship team to prepare for this summer's free agent market and so far he has lost Deron and now Steve... and Dallas isn't much father from Phoenix than LA. Not sure Dallas has anything that they might use to try to trade for Dwight which makes Cuban a multiple loser.... OOPS! Letting Chandler go is really looking like a mistake this morning. What's that saying about a bird in hand?
+
Lastly, if this is an All In play that we lost, isn't it time BC stepped away from the table?

[Dave B]

I was always of the opinion tht the Nash offer was more abput marketing and business than it was about basketball. The excellent medical and training staff in phoenix kept Steve playing. He is a 38 year old player and will eventually play down. It will be interesting to see what he has left in year three with a different training staff. I would rather watch this from a distance than as a Raptors fan watching him on the Raptors. I am pleased that he is not coming.

However, it would have been interesting to see if he had any impact on the Raptors. I hope fans who wanted him to come to Toroonto will remember that both Bosh and HWSNBN re-signed in toronto when they had a chance. Nash has refushed to play for Toronto. Give him the same treatment that was given to HWSNBN and Tracy McGrady when they came back.

[j]

"We rush to much, as a craft, as a society, and it causes untold stress and angst and, yes, work." and typos, apparently.

The twitter machine keeps people on their toes. It's feeds the appetite of the diehards. Thank your editors that you've got a beat where being first doesn't really matter...

Blogger's note: This is far, far, far, far, far too easy. "It's feeds?????" Too easy. Thanks for the chuckle

[Mike D]

If Dean (the commenter at 7:57 am) wants to play the "selective quoting" game with his Duffy quotes from SI, let's see what Marc Stein of ESPN reported in his Nash story: "The most difficult aspect of his decision, sources said, was turning down Toronto, which made the biggest financial offer to Nash in hopes of convincing Canada's best player ever to come north of the border and re-establish the Raptors as a playoff team in addition to serve his new role as general manager of the Canadian men's national team."
Kind of undermines the pity party a bit, no?

Blogger's note: Selective quoting, revisionist use of stats, bending issues for validation rather than to make a point is a troubling consistency these days

[Mike D]

As far as what's next for the Raps, Doug, do you agree that it's time to exchange quantity for quality (assuming "stay the course and reload next summer" is off the table)?
It probably makes sense to move one of Ed or Amir plus 1-2 of DeMar/Linas/JJ for a starting wing. The rotation is getting pretty unwieldy as it is, and PG is actually not a concern for this season. Your thoughts?

Blogger's note: Always thought that was wise; finding takers is an entirely different story

[Dave B]

Do you think the Raptors have any interest in Ramon Sessions?

Blogger's note: We're going to do a chat later today for things like this but, no. Why? Is he any good?

[Alain Boudreau]

What did it cost us?!?!?! Landry Fields at 6 million per is what!!! Over and over it has been proven that the best way to run your team into the ground is to pay multi-millions for minimum level talent. That's what we do. Now with Kleiza and Amir and Forbes all on deal like that we are down 20 million on players that are not starters on any team north of the Bobcats. Just like Kapono before them these 'It's only 5Mil' guys will kill you. You are better off maxing someone who doesn't deserve it than spending foolishly on this non-difference making talent. It's not that he tried for Nash and lost, it's that he may have botched an opportunity to get Lowry at they draft, in order to preserve cap space, and he certainly blew 6 million a year on NOTHING, chasing something that was already a long shot. This has been a DISASTER! There is no other way to look at it.

Blogger's note: There's lots of other ways to look at it, actually. And your numbers on Fields are wrong but don't let that get in the way

[Scott]

While Nash is a unique talent doesn't Calderon bring a very similar skill set to this team? Takes care of the ball, shoots well when needed, can beat his man off the mark and has trouble keeping athletic guards in front of him. From an on the court perspective are we much worse off with Nash being elsewhere?

[JT]

"But, really, what did this whole Nash thing cost the Raptors?

Some time.

That’s it."

I liked that the Raptors pursued Nash but I think the whole Nash thing cost them to make an offer to Fields and make an offer that way over pays him. Do the Raptors need Fields, I think not at the price he signed for. Maybe at about $2mil less per year. Yes, Fields may be traded in the future but I think the signing restricts their ability to do other things right now for this season. He doesn't make HOTH much better and instead restricts their ability to do other things to improve more. DeRozan, Johnson, Kleiza, Fields, and maybe Weems? Fields is just another guy.

[Anthony R]

I'm part of the pity party but I won't comment on that. My question(s) is this, do you see the signing of Landry Fields as a 50% waste now that Nash has gone to LA? Or do you see it as a good quality signing? Right player at the going rate? Also, what are the chances of Lin signing a back loaded offer from Houston that the Knicks can't match, is there still a ray of light for Lowery?

Blogger's note: It's an okay signing; not terrific, not terrible.

[D-Mac Ottawa]

The basketball IQ of the Lakers front court is now off-the-charts scary good. Next thing you know, Iguodala will be wearing purple and gold, and how fun would that be?
Actually, Iggy would be a perfect snag for the Raps right now, but... what do you think the chances are there, Doug? How about Batum? And was the talk of an offer to Ilyasova anything more than cyber-babble?
If Lowry's already out, is Sweet Lou Williams still available? That would be some nice gravy in the guard department.
Different day, different set of names. The watch continues. Cheers. Get that 3, BCo!

[Alain Boudreau]

The deal is 5mil, plus 5.2 mil plus 8.8 mil, but if you know the Gilbert Arenas provision that is what the KNICKS would pay if they matched (See Asik and Lin deals) we pay the average or 6.33 mil per. I am aware of the numbers.

Blogger's note: The averages mean squat

[gdr]

Today's blog was one of the best written entries yet. Thanks for your hard work Doug. Hopefully the Raps do something grand to make us forget about the "Nash Watch". Cheers

[Andrew Gregg]

Hi Doug:

I don't think the failure to land Nash is a singular knock against Coangelo--I think it's just another in a run of failures that makes me wonder if be belongs here any longer. I remember when news broke that we were getting him as GM--a shocker, to be sure. And he arrived and won GM of the year--it was pretty promising and pretty exciting, But since then, what has happened? A whole pile of mediocre nothing. The Triano years were a bust. Some comings and goings that looked like they might pan out, but didn't. But most of all, he has hooked is wagon to Bargnani as a centrepiece, and it just isn't working.

I'm not one to pile on to Bargnani. I actually think he's a very decent player, but he's not an alpha dog. Maybe Valanciunas will come in and go all Brett Lawrie on the locker room, but I doubt it. Nash would certainly have lined up the Raptor ducks and made sure they knew where to go and what to do during a game. But I look at the roster this morning, and there's no glue to hold this thing together.

I think Casey is going to be a great coach, but he has to have the tools. In this town we are basically starting players who would ride other team's benches. And how far are we into Coangelo's tenure--five years? Six? Was this plan all along? To be starting James Johnson alongside Jose Calderon? Did Coangelo walk into a boardroom and convince the money people that Ed Davis and Amir Johnson were going to be wearing all-star jerseys for years to come?

This is going nowhere. If Conagelo can swing a deal for somebody like Rudy Gay or Andre Igoudala, who knows? Maybe we sneak into the 8th spot? Is that good enough?

Maybe I'm missing something. I do admire Coangelo's ambition, going "all-in" for Nash. But like so many other things, it didn't work. I just don't get what this team is supposed to be about. You're right-it is big business, and in big business you are accountable for success and for failure. At least, that's the way it's supposed to work.

AG, Toronto

[KC]

what did this cost the raptors? umm how about landy frields, 3yrs 20M. Doug will NEVER criticize BC... how is fieds defensible?

[Marcus Rush]

The Raptors as currently constructed are a play off team with Jose at the helm as they would have been with Nash at the helm. Add a decent small forward, easier said than done, and who knows where they could finish.

The only difference is that with Nash the fans and writers would have been calling for a MVP award and with Jose he will quietly go about his work.

[Derek]

Morning Doug,
Disappointing morning, but not surprising, always figured Nash coming here was a bit of a long shot, but have to admit that my hopes were up for a few days.
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I actually find this morning that I'm "less upset" about Nash going to LA than I would have been if he'd gone to NY. I get wanting to be close to his kids, and most importantly, I get (and respect) going to a contender to try and win. He didn't take the minimum to go to Miami (for as close to a guarantee'd ring as your going to get), or even OKC, the best team in the West. He went to a contender, with a great player he respects in Kobe, but a team that still has some work cut out for them to win a ring. Had he spurned Toronto to go to NY, a team that clearly isn't a ring contender (for less money), I think that would have felt more like a rejection of Toronto - where as this is just more of LA being a better fit for him - and let's face it, if any player has earned that right, it's Nash.
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I'm stunned at all the "boo Nash" comments I'm hearing on the radio and in media this morning. We seem to forget that the Raps are an NBA team, not Canada's national team. Nash didn't spurn his "country", he chose one NBA team over another. Does his choosing LA hurt the Raps? Sure, but since when is it Steve Nash's responsibility to make sure the Raps are a success? Should Joey Votto demand that the Reds trade him to the Blue Jays so the lone Canadian baseball team can do better? Nash played for his country (at a time when it wasn't trendy to do so) and took a job with Canada Basketball. I've heard people comment that because of that job with CB, he should've signed with the Raps. What? Nash lending his time, talents and name to Canada Basketball is great for the program, regardless of where Nash plays. We should be grateful he accepted that responsibility, not complaining that he's not doing more.
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I don't blame Colangelo for going all in to get Nash. I don't think there's any more he could have done in this case to try and land him. If I blame Bryan for anything, its that we don't already have a more competitive team without Nash, because if we were better, we'd have stood a more realistic chance of landing Nash at this point. Nash was a long-shot, that clearly would've made the Raps alot better (if Nash stayed healthy) - it was an "easy fix". Nice if you can get it, but rarely do you get an "easy fix" in professional sports. So now Bryan is back to the task of making the Raps better without an "easy fix". He's still got money to spend, and some chips he can play - time to earn your money BC.
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All I can say is that we're damn lucky that Calderone is such a true pro. I think 99% of the starting point guards in this league who'd had their team try to trade or replace them year after year would be demanding a trade themselves, or at the very least, copping attitude. And for those who think Jose is horrible - stop kidding yourselves. No, he's not Deron Williams, but he's good enough that had we let him go, there'd be a lineup of teams better than the Raps bidding for his services.
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Doug - is Batum still available, and do you see the Raps still pursuing him? I'd read a story that he bashed Portland and wanted to go to Minnesota, followed by a retraction/correction a day later, denying he'd said that (gotta love this new media age).

Blogger's note: Batum hasn't signed anything so he's in play

[Dan]

I guess Nash is as old school as Lebron, Bosh and Anthony. If you can't beat them join them. At the same time you can't blame the players for wanting to better their own chances at winning because their gm's certainly haven't helped them. I know most of the media still think very highly of BC but outside of his first year here what has he really done to deserve to keep his job.