Saturday, October 9th, 2010 at 8:00 am  |  76 responses

Top 50: Steve Nash, no. 15

The definitive ranking of the NBA’s best players.

by Ben Collins

What if he had a team entirely to his own?

It’s a question old and tired now. I remember first asking it feebly peering over a railing, trying watch this dude shoot jumpshots in practice. Steve Nash was on the Mavericks then, not a two-time MVP but a weird, side-kick character that got judged a lot for his bad defense. People started complaining a lot—that this bad defense was somehow contagious and was limiting Dallas from ever getting out of the second round of the PSteve Nashlayoffs—and, eventually, he left.

Good god, were those people ever wrong.

I guess saying he was “shooting jumpshots in practice” is kind of an unbelievably weak way of putting it.

Here’s what was happening: Steve Nash took a shot from under the basket, then a took a step back, then took another shot. Pretty classic drill. By the end of this exercise, he was about four feet behind the three-point line, still shooting. And you know how many shots he missed of the 20 or so he took from beyond the arc?

Zero. None. Practice ended, it seemed, when the ballboy got tired and everybody else had left. Steve finally recognized the social cues and bolted.

Of course, I repeated this later to friends and family, who handled it as if I told them I had just robbed a bank with Walt Williams after practice. Feel free to do the same.

But I’m telling you this story now to say this: Five years ago, Steve Nash was arguably the best pure shooter on a team that also had Dirk Nowitzki on it.

This is back when you were impressed that your friend’s cell phone had a damn calculator on it. It’s not like his shooting has gotten worse. He just never got a chance to show it.

Then he went to Phoenix. Shawn Marion put up those ungodly numbers, got a nickname and almost a rebounding title. Amar’e Stoudemire put up those ungodly numbers, got a nickname and almost a scoring title.

But now one has decided that he might be Jewish, so, naturally, he moved to New York. The other is a “defensive specialist” now, so we mustn’t respect his game ever again, no, never.

Hey, did anybody notice that Steve Nash has a team all to his own now?

Granted, he has Hedo “Permafrown” Turkoglu on his team now. That should expedite the ball movement and/or constant sadness and discontent. Jason Richardson and Grant Hill are two of the best, headiest vets in the league. Robin Lopez looks like a real-life starting NBA center. (He just needs to evade his conviction for trying to kill Bart Simpson all of those years.) And the bench is spectacular, yes, but it’s still a bench.

So this is not debatable: For the first time in his two-time MVP, seven-time All-Star life, Steve Nash is the unequivocal top dog on his own team. And he’s healthier than ever.

This is debatable: Is Steve Nash one of the top shot creators, shooters—hell, scorers—in the NBA?

Look puzzled. Laugh, maybe. I’m giving you some time now, so you’re not too frazzled when it happens.

SLAMonline TOP 50 PLAYERS OVERALL RANK POSITION RANK
Player Team Position 2010 2009 2010 2009
Ray Allen Celtics SG 50 36 10 9
Gilbert Arenas Wizards SG 49 34 9 8
Lamar Odom Lakers PF 48 33 14 10
John Wall Wizards PG 47 NR 13 NR
OJ Mayo Grizzlies SG 46 46 8 12
Al Horford Hawks C 45 NR 6 NR
Jason Kidd Mavs PG 44 45 12 10
Joakim Noah Bulls C 43 NR 5 NR
LaMarcus Aldridge Blazers PF 42 39 13 12
David West Hornets PF 41 31 12 8
Monta Ellis Warriors SG 40 NR 7 NR
Andrew Bogut Bucks C 39 NR 4 NR
Yao Ming Rockets C 38 NR 3 NR
Brandon Jennings Bucks PG 37 NR 11 NR
Zach Randolph Grizzlies PF 36 NR 11 NR
Stephen Curry Warriors PG 35 NR 10 NR
David Lee Warriors PF 34 NR 10 NR
Brook Lopez Nets C 33 NR 2 NR
Gerald Wallace Bobcats SF 32 NR 7 NR
Manu Ginobili Spurs SG 31 29 6 7
Tony Parker Spurs PG 30 15 9 3
Kevin Garnett Celtics PF 29 13 9 3
Rudy Gay Grizzlies SF 28 44 6 9
Josh Smith Hawks PF 27 40 8 13
Andre Iguodala 76ers SG 26 26 5 6
Al Jefferson Jazz PF 25 23 7 7
Russell Westbrook Thunder PG 24 NR 8 NR
Chauncey Billups Nuggets PG 23 19 7 5
Tyreke Evans Kings PG 22 NR 6 NR
Danny Granger Pacers SF 21 21 5 5
Carlos Boozer Bulls PF 20 32 6 9
Paul Pierce Celtics SF 19 17 4 4
Joe Johnson Hawks SG 18 20 4 4
Rajon Rondo Celtics PG 17 27 5 8
Amar’e Stoudemire Knicks PF 16 16 5 6
Steve Nash Suns PG 15 22 4 6

Notes
• Rankings are based solely on projected ’10-11 performance.
• Contributors to this list include: Jeremy Bauman, Maurice Bobb, Erildas Budraitis, Sean Ceglinsky, Ben Collins, Bryan Crawford, Sandy Dover, Adam Figman, Manny Maduakolam, Eddie Maisonet, Ryne Nelson, Doobie Okon, Ben Osborne, Charles Peach, Branden Peters, Quinn Peterson, David Schnur, Todd Spehr, Kyle Stack, Adam Sweeney, Dennis Tarwood, Tracy Weissenberg, Lang Whitaker, Eric Woodyard, and Nima Zarrabi.
• Want more of the SLAMonline Top 50? Check out the archive.

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  • kos87

    No way is Rose better than Nash!In a couple of years maybe…Nash is bashed for his defense,he is not that bad,just average.All the other aspects of his game,shooting,clutch,passing,floor awareness,quickness,finishing in many possible ways,toughness,etc make him one of the best PG’s ever.Not 2-MVP material, but still..

  • kos87

    Diamantidis is a great player no doubt,but with his signature move being a pirouette and a pass 20 feet away from the basket,he cannot even be mentioned in the same sentence as Nash.But with Greek journalists (Skountis,Hatzigeorgiou etc) hyping him all the time,brainwash is inevitable.

  • Ronald

    Is there any good point guard that has decent defense in this league? Don’t say Rondo, or I’ll link the damn youtube clip where Fisher(!) blows by Rondo for the game winning layup.

  • Ronald

    And D-Rose hasn’t shown the ability to freaking run a team and he’s above Nash. Yeah, jumping damn high and running damn fast is important. But isn’t passing, running a team and shooting the most important qualities of a point guard? Freaking D-Rose is a walking turnover.

  • http://slamonline.com Allenp

    Jukai
    Why doesn’t he back affect him more on offense?

  • http://www.twitter.com/hurstySYD Hursty

    Allen- different movements.

  • http://www.kb24.com The Seed

    Nash is overrated, I would state facts, but who cares, because he has fooled alot of yall, by running a run a gun offense that has not produce anything. Nash has had some great teams in PHX and they have failed, but he is the leader. Those two MVPS, is a BLACK STAIN on the league and history books will wonder what was wrong with the NBA during those years. Nash is number 30, because Amare got him alot of easy assits, but people will say Nash made everyone better, so why did Dallas with a defensive point guard in Devin Harris make it to the NBA Finals, should have won, but (ref gate) after Nash left. People answer or riddle me that. BOOK IT!!

  • The Philosopher

    Co-sign Allenp…

  • http://sdklff.com Jukai

    Allen: Do you shoot jumpers with your back scrunched up? That’s a pretty odd question to ask.
    Perhaps you should ask yourself, how GREAT would his offense be without that back problem?

  • http://sdklff.com Jukai

    Iverson > Diamantidis >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Spanoulis

  • Harry Twatter

    @ SHAN I second what your saying. Rose compared to Nash
    Rose: Younger, Faster , Stronger, More hops, Underrated Mid Range shooter, WAY tougher to guard, Better Defense, Bigger

    Nash: Old (dinosaur in basketball years), better court vision, more range on jumper, better free throw shooter, had better team around him in 09.

    I’m taking Rose for 2010-2011 without a doubt and i bet Phoenix would too if they had the chance

  • rob

    why is everyone saying rose is sooo good? russell westbrook is a bit better than he is. did you not see the FIBA games? couldnt shoot an open jumpshot against them slowass euros and couldnt effectively drive it enough like russ did to be very effective, and he’s not as tough as russ is either.russ still does what he does all the while defering to KD and J green while rose is the “leader” of his team. I dont need stats to prove anything, theyre a misconception. its what ive seen from both that tells the truth

  • JoeMaMa

    Steve Nash is, and has been for the past few years, the best shooter in the league, and one of the greatest of all time. 50%+ from the field AS A POINT GUARD. 40%+ from 3. 90%+ from the line. He’s a 180% player, done it 5 times…also done by Bird (X3), Reggie, Dirk, Mark Price. I don’t go on stats, but numbers like that cannot be ignored. One of the best pick/roll artists ever, as well. Deadly if you switch, deadly if you show/recover, deadly if you try to fight under/over the screen. Also, from a fan’s standpoint, is how fun the game is with Nash. Phoenix games are a joy to watch: the running game, when successful (50 wins+ qualifies to me) is the reason why the NBA has fans: athletic plays, lots of points, a crowd constantly engaged.

  • Armando

    Rose is not that much bigger than Nash, if I’m not wrong both measured at 6’1.25″ w/o shoes. More athletic yes, but that doesn’t mean he’s a good defender. Better 1-on-1 than Nash, yes, but not good. The danger here is to overrate Nash because he’s been underrated. I agree that he’s not a good 1-on-1 defender, but overall he’s not horrible. Decent rotations, good at getting charges, scrappy. So, yes he’s not a good defender, but not among the league’s worst. I’d rather have a guy that tries and does what he can with the tools he’s got than someone with all the physical tools who just can’t seem to bother or seem unable to learn how to defend like Stoudemire or Magette…

  • Armando

    @Harry Twatter: Rose tougher to guard? Seriously? 100% with you JoeMaMa! How do you guard Nash? How do you guard Rose? What can Rose do against against a good defender that Nash can’t?

  • Harry Twatter

    @ Arwomando Nash and rose are about the same height but Rose has 20ibs more muscle then Nash. I’m pretty sure you’ve never seen 20ibs of muscle before so to you that’s not a big difference. copy and pace this. if you can show me NASH dominating ROSE a entire game like this then we have something to talk about but until then stick to Hockey…….. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNTkktsPXPM

  • Harry Twatter

    @ EVERYONE here’s another so you don’t think it was a fluke…….http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbToPkFOzS0

  • http://Slamonline.com Nbk

    Phoenix will win what 5 less games then Chicago this year…with less talent in a tougher conference…all because of Nash’s offensive exploits. And to those of you that say you would rather have another pg over Nash I ask you how many of those pg’s have been to the playoffs for a decade straight? The wcf what 4 times? How many got there without a their best scorer? And how many got there LAST season? Granted he hasn’t won any titles but Kobe, Shaq, Duncan, and Dirk are some pretty formidable road blocks…(he hasn’t lost to anyone else)

  • Armando

    Harry, you’re obviously a funny guy. OK, Rose is a bit bigger. If you read (I understand you master this skill) my post, I didn’t claim that Nash was able to defend Rose 1-on-1, but just that I don’t think Nash is easier to defend than Rose, rather the contrary. OK, he can’t dunk, but he can drive and score in traffic with both hands… 2 points is 2 points. Was hoping to keep the discussion reasonably polite… And by the way, I’ve lived in many countries and worked with many different things, amongst them in a butchery, so I do know exactly what 20lbs of muscle looks like.

  • Armando

    …and I did say Rose is more athletic. And just to help you in your future posts, pounds are lbs, not ibs, and it’s copy and paste, not pace, which means something completly different.

  • Justin

    The Seed…Actually, Nash’s two MVP’s showed that they can actually get it right. All you have to do is look at Phoenix’s stats when Nash is in the lineup vs. when he’s not there. Look at the turnaround for that team his first season back. How come people say Nash’s stats are bloated because of the run and gun but nobody says that for Magic and Showtime, or Kidd’s first years with Dallas? The answer is because he’s a little Canadian white kid not named Kobe or Shaq and it bothers (a lot) Yanks to the point that they’re blinded to his skills. And by the way, anyone who calls what Derek Fisher did to Nash as good D or containing him is blinded to what it really was. A good old fashioned mugging/flop fest. I like Fisher but I was actually embarassed for him

  • the Dude

    I don’t think changing Steve’s name to Kobe or Shaq would make him more appealing to SLAM, but i may be wrong. Regardless, Nasty is only outdone by one other point guard … Stockton.

  • Justin

    Maybe not to SLAM but to the people that seem to think Nash didn’t deserve those MVP’s.

  • AT33

    Dude, Steve Nash has always been the top dog on his team! And why do you have him in 09 ranked 22nd and in 2010 at 15? Your ranking is way off.. he’s top 10 for the past 6years at least! Too bad he didn’t have a great team cuz the dude is raw and got mad handles! He could have easily won a few rings!

  • KobeNash1234

    close but not close enough. Steve Nash led the NBA in assists, free throw percentage and three-point percentage and led his team to the Western Conference Finals last season and he doesn’t crack the top ten? Nash is the best point guard in the game today and is most definitely a top ten, if not a top five player.

  • Phamie

    Steve Nash deserve to be on the top 5 and everybody knows that. DO YOU AGREE!!!

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