Steve Nash 'open to everything'

• Recommend0
• Tweet0
• Comments0
• Email
• Print

Set to become an unrestricted free agent July 1, Steve Nash says he's keeping his options open.

"It sounds like a company line, but my situation really right now is I'm open to everything," the Phoenix Suns point guard told ESPN NewYork 98.7's Stephen A. Smith and Ryan Ruocco on Monday, "and I will definitely look at every situation that comes my way on Sunday, and I'm not going to close myself to any opportunities."

Nash is expected to have plenty of suitors, including the New York Knicks. The 16-year veteran has expressed interest in playing in New York and wouldn't be opposed to playing with Jeremy Lin or for coach Mike Woodson.

"I wouldn't have any fear of the fans maybe having a love affair with Jeremy," Nash said. "I think it's great. ... That doesn't really bother me."

Nash thrived in ex-Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni's high octane run-and-gun offense.

“

It sounds like a company line, but my situation really right now is I'm open to everything and I will definitely look at every situation that comes my way on Sunday, and I'm not going to close myself to any opportunities.

” -- Steve Nash

"Everyone knows I love Mike. We had some good years together," Nash said. "It would've been another factor, but what's in the past is in the past. When Sunday (July 1) comes around, I'm going to have to look at everything with fresh new eyes and see what's best for me."

The Knicks are still waiting to see how much salary cap space they have to add a player like Nash. An arbitrator ruled that Lin and Steve Novak should be granted Bird rights, enabling the Knicks to go over the cap to sign them. But the NBA has appealed.

Nash is in New York to promote his annual charity soccer match, Wednesday in Chinatown. The match features international soccer and NBA players.

The Knicks are just one of several teams likely to be interested in Nash. The Miami Heat, Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks are also possibilities, as are the Brooklyn Nets if they can't re-sign Deron Williams. And Nash didn't rule out staying in Phoenix.

Nash is 38, so his career is winding down. He wants to win a championship but also wants to be compensated as well.

Nash said he worries about the possibility of taking less money to play for a team he believes is a contender, only for one of its top players to be injured -- or worse, for him to be traded.

"I have to be really careful and make a sound decision," Nash said.

Nash, who averaged 12.5 points and 10.7 assists for the Suns last season, still considers himself an elite point guard in the NBA and feels he can play three more seasons at a high level.

So would he rather join the Heat and win a title or be on the team that knocks them off?

"The truth is I'm a bit old school. For me, it would be hard to put on a Lakers jersey. That's just the way it is," Nash said. "You play against them so many times in the playoffs, and I just use them as an example, and I have the utmost respect for them and their organization.

"I kind of have that tendency (to try to beat the best teams), so it is strange, but as a free agent you're free to go where you want, so I'd have to consider everything regardless of the past or the future."

Mike Mazzeo is a frequent contributor to ESPNNewYork.com. ESPN.com's Marc Stein contributed to this report.

• Recommend0
• Tweet0
• Comments0
• Email
• Print
• Subscribe