HoopsVibe

The two-time MVP has inked a new 3 year deal to finish out the days with the Phoenix Suns. They felt he was necessary to bridge the present players with the future and that’s a commendable thing to do. They knew Nash’s productivity is sliding down, but to finally have that player to retire with the franchise is a great way to go out. His game mirrors John Stockton since they both do not need athleticism or gladiator-like physiques. They merely need good knees and passing instincts to get through.

We definitely know that John Stockton is a hall of famer, but what about Nash? At first thought, we’d say yes because of the multiple MVP awards. We think of the statistics, but John Stockton, Kevin Johnson, Jason Kidd, Magic Johnson, Stephon Marbury, and Isiah Thomas have put up better. Mark Price can probably be thrown in the mix. Numbers wise, Nash is a fine player. Do not get me wrong. The thing is if Stockton, Kidd, KJ, and Marbury did not get any award for the incredible numbers that they were known to beast with during their prime years then why did Nash get two? Kobe, Shaq, Kidd, and Tim Duncan should have gotten them if we wanted to correct history. As the leader of Planet Orange, he never led them to the Finals.

With the way morale is sinking for Amare Stoudemire and Kerr making a mess of the roster, The Suns do not look like they will be making it back to the playoffs. This organization used to have Joe Johnson, a healthy Amare, Boris Diaw, Raja Bell, Leandro Barbosa, and Nash, in his prime, leading the charge and they couldn’t make it with that stacked lineup. Most stars would kill to play on a roster like that especially Charles Barkley. He’s still a very good player although I’m not sure if he is a great player. A great player dominates on both ends. Steve does this only on one.

Is Nash a hall of famer?

Conventional wisdom will say yes because of the awards. Remember, just because the sheep voted for him does not mean that other basketball aficionados around the States agreed at the time when he won them. My immediate reaction was “Oh what?” If he played some kind of defense then I would have somewhat agreed. I’m going to take a stand and say that Nash is not a hall of famer. Why?

He played on the Dallas Mavericks with Nowitzki and nothing was done. He led a stacked lineup in Phoenix and nothing was accomplished. Let’s also parallel him with Chauncey Billups. He does not put up the fantasy numbers, but he won Finals MVP and a championship. These are things that all basketball players hope to obtain. Billups got awards that Nash would die to get his hair on.

Does that make Billups a hall of famer?

What about Mark Jackson? He’s second on the NBA’s all time assists list with 10,323. Despite that great statistical mark in history, he's still not in the Hall of Fame since he probably hurt his chances by playing for many teams.

[image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/keithallison]/2311308942/]