BREAKING NEWS: Nash OUT for All-Star Game

by Dan @ Bright Side Of The Sun on Feb 12, 2007 3:44 PM MST in Phoenix Suns News

Thanks to reader TexSUN for pointing out this article on ESPN. It appears that Steve Nash will not be playing in Seattle on Wednesday and will also sit out during the Skills Competition and All-Star game.

I'm perfectly fine with this and have two thoughts:

If it's a real injury, I definitely don't want him aggravating anything during a stupid All-Star game that doesn't matter.
If it's an injury that is bothersome and Steve is using this as an excuse to get out of participating and sticking it to the NBA for trying to force him to participate, I'm fine with that as well. If a guy wants to take a little bit of time off and spend it with his family, that's fine. It's definitely not going to affect my decision to watch or not watch the All-Star game just because Steve isn't going to participate in a 5 minute competition. Besides, he'd kill Bryant, James and Wade in the competition anyway. So what's the use of him participating? It's a no-win situation for him. If he wins, he was supposed to win. If he loses, then one of those guys can gloat and say they should be MVP because they're better than him at a skills competition.

Rest up, Steve. We need you in the 2nd half to be as strong as you can.

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Comments

LOL

I loved your #2 point there. I don't usually get into conspiracy theories, and Nash never struck me as the type to miss games unnecessarily (and maybe hurt his team's playoff seeding) just to get out of a silly All-Star competition. But if there's even a hint of a chance of making that shoulder worse by playing, then he shouldn't until it's completely well. After all, he'll be needing that shoulder come playoff time to drop in all those last-minute clutch 3's. :)

by TexSUN on Feb 12, 2007 4:28 PM MST reply actions

I went a little crazy on that

I didn't mean to make it as long as it was but it just kept coming out of this little brain of mine. Do I really think it's a conspiracy to stick it to the NBA? Nah...but it's fun to talk about.

by Dan @ Bright Side Of The Sun on Feb 12, 2007 4:44 PM MST reply actions

OK SOMEONE FILL ME IN!!!

So i've been in Berlin and Prague for the past week and the tidbits of news about the Suns i have heard have not been good tidbits. Is Nash ok? Is his injury serious? Is Diaw ok? How good or bad have we been playing without Nash? Ect, ect, ect....... Please fill me in guys.

by Turambar on Feb 13, 2007 8:35 AM MST reply actions

Quick Update

Nash has missed 3.5 games since he went out with a shoulder injury. The Suns won the game where he went out in the first half. That was against Denver. They then played Portland and won that game although it took a missed last second shot by the Blazers to get into overtime and the win.

The next two games were pretty bad. The Hawks game was especially bad when it seemed the Suns thought they could go out on the court and win just by showing up. Needless to say, the Hawks won that game easily.

The next game against Chicago was one they could have won but with Boris and Steve out, they really didn't play up to their potential. Boris tweaked his back in the Atlanta game and he is doubtful for Wednesday's game against Seattle.

Overall, what it shows is how much Steve Nash is the MVP. Without him, the Suns are not an elite team. They would be fighting for the 8th position in the playoffs. With him, they are fighting for the first position. If that doesn't prove his worth, I don't know what else does.

by Dan @ Bright Side Of The Sun on Feb 13, 2007 10:41 AM MST up reply actions

Ok thanks

Sigh i wish we werent so dependent on Nash. I feel as if we could still win without him, but none of our boys really seem to step up as a team without him. So much talent yet without Nash they lack that truely killer edge. Well these last few games will atleast give them a reality check that maybe Nash wont always be there for them. Perhaps even they'll step up to the challenge now.

by Turambar on Feb 13, 2007 10:58 AM MST up reply actions

We all know who the the real MVP is, but...

Definitely the Suns are an entirely different team (oddly enough, even on defense) without Nash on the floor. However, I expect the "novelty" of that will wear off for the voters this year. Besides, if a team's collapse without it's star player is the deciding criteria, then you'd have to give it to Paul Pierce this year! This year, I think the team with the best record will get the MVP. And yes, I think Nash deserves it more than ever before, but I don't see it happening unless the Suns can pass the Mavs for #1. And it may not happen even then--I've already heard Hollinger state the Dirk's durability is a deciding factor in his mind. I wouldn't be surprised if other writers don't use that as an "excuse" to vote in somebody new this year.

by TexSUN on Feb 13, 2007 11:01 AM MST up reply actions

Guess there's no way to edit comments?

Dan: Is there a way I can remove the duplicate "the" from my previous comment? That was straight from the Department of Redundancy Department I guess... :)

by TexSUN on Feb 13, 2007 11:07 AM MST up reply actions