Los Angeles Lakers: Can Steve Nash Bounce Back In 2014-15?

By Evan Massey | Oct 9, 2014

Mar 28, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Steve Nash (10) dribbles the ball against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first half at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports /

The Los Angeles Lakers are heading into a very uncertain season, but they do have both Steve Nash and Kobe Bryant coming back off of injury plagued seasons. They did acquire both Carlos Boozer and Jeremy Lin to help out this season, and rookie forward Julius Randle is also going to be a key player coming off of the bench for the Lakers.

It’s obvious that the Lakers are still hoping to contend for a playoff spot, but they are going to need both Bryant and Nash to bounce back this season.

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Nash seems to be the more questionable player of the two, as his chronic back problems have completely derailed his career. Is it possible that he could have a bounce back season in 2014-15 and help lead the Lakers back to the playoffs?

Last season with the Lakers, Nash ended up only being able to play in 15 regular season games and started in 10 of them. He averaged 6.8 points, 5.7 assists, and 1.9 rebounds per game, saw his shooting numbers take major hits as well. Nash shot just 38.3 percent from the floor overall, and 33.3 percent from behind the three-point arc.

It seems like a long shot that he is able to make a full comeback and get back to being the dominating starting point guard that he used to be, but there is no doubt that he still has the ability. Nash has said that he plans to retire after the upcoming season, but he has taken those comments back a bit since then. Obviously it would be nice to see Nash finish off the last year or two of his career on the court and playing his game, but it will take a lot to prove that he is back.

First of all, he will need to stay healthy while still playing a good amount of minutes for a team that desperately needs him to play a big role. The Lakers aren’t going to have a chance at the playoffs unless Nash can become a legitimate scorer and get back to the type of point guard that he once was. Nash likely won’t have to play the 25-30 minutes per game that a starting point guard usually would, due to the fact that the Lakers brought in Lin to help give him some time off.

Not only will Nash get some time off, he might not even have to start every night. Byron Scott will likely use the same type of system that the Miami Heat used last season to help rest Dwyane Wade. Nash will likely be playing more than Wade did last season, but he will get some nights off here and there and lighter loads on some nights than others when he does play.

Los Angeles desperately needs Nash to come through this season if they want any chance of competing. Nash has always lived up to the moment when his team needs him in the past, but this situation could be something that he isn’t able to defeat. Back issues are one of the worst nagging injuries in any sport, and at the age of 40, he simply doesn’t have the recovery ability that he would have had even five years ago.

All of that being said, Nash looked very good in the Lakers’ first preseason game against the Denver Nuggets. While that is a good sign, keeping that type of play up over the course of an 82-game season is going to be much more difficult. The Lakers are hoping that he can come through for them, but at this point in time it seems to be nearly impossible.

Despite the unlikelihood of Nash making a return to his former self, he has battled difficult situations before in the past and come out on top. It wouldn’t be too surprising to see him come through with a big season.

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