The Phoenix Suns are currently mired in a 4 game losing streak which has for all intensive purposes eliminated them from the playoffs. Upon listening to sports talk radio around the Valley of the Sun, many are placing the blame solely on Steve Nash.

It is true that Steve Nash can not cover any opposing Point Guard one on one anymore; in fact one could venture to say he never could do this even in his prime! However, any good defensive basketball coach will tell you that a defense is not defined by one player; rather it is a collective team effort. The problem for the Suns right now is that when Steve Nash is dribbled past at the point of attack, there is simply no help behind him. A combination of Steve Nash and Shaquille O’Neal on the court leads to average Point Guards like Aaron Brooks to go off for 30 against the Suns on a nightly basis. This point was clear against the Rockets 3 nights ago; Brooks beat Nash off the dribble and Shaq was too slow on the help resulting in an easy layup and victory for the Rockets. I have said it before, to use Nash effectively he should not be in the game with 10 seconds left and the opposing team has the ball. Steve Nash needs to take a lesson from the Spurs and check his pride at the arena door and be willing to take a seat so the Suns can win some close games.

What is lost in this four game stretch is the offensive brilliance of Steve Nash. Without Amare Stoudemire, the Suns are simply undermanned to contend with the best the NBA has to offer. Steve Nash has tried everything he possibly can since coming off an ankle injury that held him out of 3 straight games. Here are his stats in the last 4: 26.0 PPG, 10.3 APG, 4.75 RPG, 1.5 Steals, all along with 55% shooting from the field. If he is supposedly slowing down; these numbers against the NBA’s elite teams could have fooled me. To further investigate, I took a look at his +- over the course of the last 4 games which is a pretty good depiction if he is helping or hurting the team while on the floor.

Orlando Magic: Team Deficit 12 —-Steve Nash +- (-12) Spread = 0
Miami Heat: Team Deficit: 6 —-Steve Nash +- (+4) Spread = +10
Houston Rockets: Team Deficit: 2 —-Steve Nash +- (-2) Spread = 0
San Antonio Spurs: Team Deficit: 5 —-Steve Nash +- (-3) Spread = +2

So as you can see, it is not Steve Nash killing the Suns it is the whole team; they just don’t have enough without Amare Stoudemire. Enjoy Steve Nash for the rest of the season and the beauty if which he plays the game. Because if the Suns don’t make the playoffs this is likely the end of the Steve Nash and Phoenix Suns era. Mike D’Antoni is waiting in New York with open arms.