Don't Blame GM Steve Kerr this summer, there's a new GM in town

For the next few weeks, there's a new GM in town.  GM Steve Nash is now calling the shots.  The now undisputed  linchpin to the Suns success in the new millennium has usurped organizational power by his wait-and-see approach to signing an extension. 

Much discussion has raged about whether GM-in-name Steve Kerr is going to blow up the team.  He does have that option.  However, he doesn't necessarily have the option to save the team.  That option rests with GM Steve Nash and is completely predicated on how GM Steve (Nash) feels about the off-season moves. 

While obviously the team holds an option to force Nash to stay for the next year, Nash retains the option on whether or not to sign an extension.  Without an extension, Nash could walk at the end of the season for nothing, forcing a trade now.

Even with the best intentions, bettering the team according to GM Steve Nash's preferences may fail, and the rebuilding will ensue anyway. The luxury that GM Nash has is that he doesn't have to worry about feasibility, make the trades happen, contend with the backlash to unpopular moves, or even specify what moves to make.  He simply says what he wants in general terms, and if it happens, he stays, if not, he rolls. 

As long as Nash is in a Suns jersey, the team has a chance to compete.  Once he's gone, the team will scramble around in the dark for a couple of years, looking for a new alchemy of winning.  Don't hold your breath.

This is not a criticism of GM Steve Nash's moves nor of GM Steve Kerr's moves.  Nash's view is legitimate and taken by many aging stars (including the Black Mamba).  Instead, this is just a reminder that while GM Steve Kerr is still responsible for the off-season moves, he is answering to a higher power, and the choice to rebuild is not entirely his.