The New York Knicks reportedly remain interested in acquiring veteran point guard Steve Nash of the Phoenix Suns, but he continues to indicate that he's happy in Phoenix, despite the team's sluggish start.
"I'm still with the Suns and happily with the Suns. I've put everything I have into trying to turn this thing around and trying to see what we can do to get ourselves in back into contention. To be honest, with this condensed season, I've put all my focus into preparing to play every day." -- Nash, after Phoenix' 91-88 win on Wednesday night in New York
The Knicks, who entered the truncated 2011-2012 NBA season with championship aspirations, have struggled in the absence of a true point guard, relying mostly upon rookie Iman Shumpert and second-year player Toney Douglas. Both have displayed varying levels of promise, but neither brings Nash's offering to the table.
Nash understands the Knicks' woes, and acknowledged how coach Mike D'Antoni has struggled to deal with the point guard situation.
"He's in a tough position, you know. They’ve constantly changed and brought in new people, and now he's got all these new pieces. He hasn't really had the point guard he wanted, and hopefully Baron [Davis] will get healthy. They gave away their point guard to get Tyson [Chandler] and fill up their frontcourt and have another guy to guard the interior, and now they’re waiting for Baron to get healthy. So that's tough. It's tough not to have that balanced, full roster, so I do feel for them."
Baron Davis isn't expected to return for several weeks due to a back issue, and speculation surrounding Nash to the Knicks will likely continue through the March 15th trade deadline.
With limited assets to offer as compensation for Nash in a trade, the most likely scenario for a D'Antoni-Nash reunion (after their days together in Phoenix), remains for him to sign as a free agent next off-season.