Steve Nash trade rumors

There are new rumblings out of Phoenix if the Suns falter, Steve Nash will on the trading block.
Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni and Amar'e Stoudemire would give their left lung to reunite with the veteran playmaker. Nash lives in SoHo in the summer and has given vibes about being intrigued about ending his career as a Knick.
Steve Kerr, the former Suns president who worked last night's Knicks-Bulls game for TNT, said he feels the Knicks wouldn't have the pieces to land Nash. For that matter, he feels they couldn't land Carmelo Anthony, either.

"In that situation where you want to start over, maybe rebuild, you got to get draft picks and the Knicks don't have any. They gave them to Houston," Kerr told The Post before the Knicks' 120-112 victory. "I don't see what you put together on that roster that makes sense for Phoenix. Or Denver."
Kerr, who quit in June to go back to TV, said he can foresee Phoenix moving forward with a Nash trade if it believes it can't win now.
"Nobody's untradeable," Kerr said. "I know a year ago no way we would've considered that. But if a team struggles and looks like it won't be a playoff team, they have to consider all their options. But you can't just do it for the sake of doing it. You have to hit a home run. The reality is I don't see any deal put together for those two teams."
*
Stoudemire said he would love play on the 2012 Olympic team and feels the Knicks will grant him permission.
The Knicks forbid him to play in the World Championships this summer because of insurance issues and concern over his surgically repaired left knee.
"You want to make sure you stay healthy and be ready for the regular season," Stoudemire said. "But I think three years of staying in shape, I think it will all work out."

Steve Nash keeps busy off court with movies, charity, business

Steve Nash is restless, like a shark that swims to breathe.

He moves through life like he moves down the basketball court: darting forward, searching for opportunities, seizing the moment.

The Suns guard begins his 15th NBA season Monday, when the team leaves for training camp. He is 36, has two years left on his contract and hopes to keep playing beyond that.

But on the court or not, Nash's dribble will never fade - his restless energy drives him forward, looking for openings. He already has begun a second career. And a third. And a fourth. The traits that help him excel in basketball - creative vision, determination and selflessness - will drive his post-NBA life, too, with his ventures into filmmaking, free enterprise and philanthropy.

His fledgling video-production company on Tuesday will debut a documentary on ESPN about Terry Fox, a man with an amputated leg who tried to run across Canada. Nash's charitable foundation continues to donate millions of dollars to assist underserved children. Not content with 16 fitness clubs in Canada, a digital-marketing firm, a vitamin company, a sports skin-care line and a stake in Vancouver's Major League Soccer expansion team, Nash has launched a marketing consultancy, relying on his experience two years ago as an unpaid intern.

"It's very valuable to be doing this while I have the visibility of my career," Nash said. "I'm at a stage of my life where I want to learn, grow and try different things. I get more life out of this than playing golf or other things athletes do in their spare time. This can stress me out, but it's also invigorating.

"I can't sit still. It'd be wonderful if I could. It sounds relaxing and a fun way to spend retirement, but it wouldn't work for me."

Creative vision

Nash plays basketball like a creative artist, with the vision to see the big picture. That trait works for filmmaking, a burgeoning passion that puts him on a national stage this week just two years after starting a film company.

Meathawk, "a two-man band" with his English cousin Ezra Holland, has gone from producing commercials and team videos to the Terry Fox documentary, "Into the Wind," which airs at 5 p.m. Tuesday. Nash and Holland produced and directed the film about Fox, Nash's childhood idol who was fighting cancer in 1980 when he set out to make his famous run.

Nash's filmmaking foray began with his wife, Alejandra, sharing what her father, a film buff, taught her about movies. A seed sprouted and kept branching out to the point that Nash wrote, pitched and produced "Training Day," a 2008 viral Nike commercial of him playing soccer in New York.

Meathawk followed, teaming Nash's creativity and social and professional network with Holland's music-video and commercial-producing career. They created viral videos starring Nash and other Suns for laughs and made commercials for his endorsements. They turned serious with two years of work on the Fox documentary and early work on a Pele documentary at the request of Oscar-winning director Bill Guttentag. Their aim is to make feature films.

"At some point, you cross the line from being a spectator to participant," Nash said. "It just sort of happened as innocently as that and keeps moving."

"Filmmaking is a very experiential art form that is accessible if you're willing," Nash said. "To become a painter or sculptor, I wouldn't know where to start. By watching filmmaking, I felt for whatever reason I could do that. That need to be creative and get things off your chest to express things is fulfilling, much the way basketball does."

Nash and Holland saw their early work as training for serious ventures, such as when Nash pitched "Into the Wind" to ESPN.

"He has very good ideas," Holland said after a recent EA Sports video game commercial shoot with Nash. "Like anything he gets interested in, he researches thoroughly. . . . He works hard to establish himself and uses his celebrity and credibility to open doors, which is very shrewd."

Nash and Holland shot 90 percent of the Fox film together, making a piece that drew tears and strong reviews at this month's Toronto International Film Festival. They worked around Nash's Suns life, editing film by Internet videoconference.

"I have no idea if we'll find a niche or if we'll just make things we like in a random but interesting way," Nash said.

Determination

Basketball, which this year will put Nash over the $100 million mark in career earnings, is now just a part of his business portfolio. He hopes to apply the same drive to make other passions profitable.

Before Meathawk, the roots of Consigliere, his month-old Manhattan marketing company, formed in 2007. Nash went to Deutsch, an esteemed ad agency in New York City, for two weeks of talks to help pursue an equity stake in Tottenham Hotspur, his lifelong favorite English Premier League soccer team.

He met Michael Duda, Deutsch's chief strategist, and wound up back at Deutsch the next summer for a three-month unpaid internship (with an office) to learn business strategies for Meathawk.

"There was a depth that was almost surprising, as he showed up to work as this slight, athletic guy on a skateboard," Duda said. "He's very unassuming and participatory. He's got this insatiable tenacity of wanting to do something well. He has a genuine curiosity driven by a desire to succeed. It's refreshing."

Duda said Deutsch's people learned more from Nash's "quick-twitch brain" than vice versa because of his discipline, efficiency, ideas and forest-for-the-trees vision. Nash talked to Duda about how ad firms should emphasize the draw of a product's brand and invest in the companies, just as Consigliere now sets out to do.

Duda said he is staking his career on Nash's creativity and networking.

"The amount of five-, 10-minute phone calls we have a week are probably as effective as people I work with 15 to 20 hours per week," Duda said. "Steve will have a better career off the court than on it."

Selflessness

On the court, Nash's unselfishness helps his teammates thrive. Off the court, that same generosity helps children prosper.

The first non-basketball work Nash did is his 9-year-old Steve Nash Foundation, which gives kids charities $250,000 to $500,000 annually. It committed $2 million for an east Phoenix early-childhood education and health center, which broke ground this month.

Nash embraced charity for many years while insisting his name be unattached. As with film and business, he learned the power of his brand to elicit contributions.

"I always worry Steve is going to hear that most athletes or celebrities don't spend every day working on their foundation because I'll lose my Number 1 volunteer," said Jenny Miller, foundation executive director. "He's an incredible problem solver. He can see the end result and figure out not only the best and fastest way to get there but the most productive, creative, inclusive way."

Nash's efforts target the plights of children where he works (Arizona), where he grew up (British Columbia) and where his wife grew up (Paraguay). His endorsements always have a tie-in to his foundation, which he calls "the pillar of what I want to do long term."

Nash's belief in early education caused him to take a stand against Proposition 302, which would move an early-childhood health and education fund of more than $300 million to Arizona's general fund. He does not shy away from politics, speaking out in 2003 against the Iraq war and SB 1070 this year.

"There are some things that are more important than popularity for Steve," Miller said. "Standing up for tiny children who don't have a voice means more than whether someone wants his autograph.

"He has a real need to keep things moving forward. Just because the arena you're playing in changes, your work ethic and discipline don't."

What's ahead

This year brings additional challenges for Nash. Amar'e Stoudemire left for the New York Knicks. Nash will have five or six new teammates. His favorite job, fatherhood, expands in November when a son is expected to join his twin daughters, who will soon be 6.

Nash will try to use his unique vision, drive and selflessness to get the Suns to exceed expectations, again, and to prolong his career. If his last shot is near, his next stage in life will be fast-paced, as well.

"I know what I don't know, so it's always invigorating to learn something I don't know," Nash said.

Golden State ends seven-game losing streak with 132-127 win over Phoenix

Corey Maggette scored a season-high 33 points and had eight rebounds, Monta Ellis added 33 points and 10 assists and the Golden State Warriors beat the Phoenix Suns 132-127 on Saturday to end a seven-game skid.

Stephen Curry added 13 points, including two free throws with 3 seconds remaining, as Golden State outlasted Phoenix in a game that featured little defense from either team. Six players scored in double figures for the Warriors, who had lost 13 of 15 before ending a four-game losing streak to the Suns.

Steve Nash had 36 points and nine assists for Phoenix, but the veteran point guard missed a 3-pointer with 5.9 seconds that would have tied the game. The Suns have lost seven straight road games.

Maggette went 13 of 17 from the floor and scored four points in the final 90 seconds, including a follow-up dunk that gave Golden State a 127-123 lead after Ellis missed a jumper.

After Nash scored on a driving layup, Maggette made two free throws to make it 129-125. Nash, who had 19 points in the third quarter, scored on another layup but Anthony Morrow made a free throw before Nash missed the 3-pointer.

Anthony Randolph had 17 points, while Morrow and C.J. Watson had 14 points apiece for Golden State, who hadn't won since beating New Jersey 105-89 on Dec. 9.

Phoenix's Jason Richardson had 22 points against his former team while Amare Stoudamire had just nine points and seven rebounds before fouling out late in the fourth quarter.

The Suns were coming off a 124-93 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Christmas Day, which might have had an effect late in the game against Golden State.

Phoenix led 108-104 after three quarters but was outscored 17-8 to start the final period and couldn't catch up after that.

Phoenix beat Golden State 123-101 when the two teams played at US Airways Center on Oct. 30. Warriors coach Don Nelson had a full roster to work with in that first matchup but since then the team has traded disgruntled forward and former team captain Stephen Jackson to Charlotte, lost Kalenna Azubuike to a season-ending knee injury and has been without injured starting center Andris Biedrins.

Surprisingly, the Warriors played better the second time around with less than a full roster of healthy players.

Neither team played much defense in the first half, a typical theme when the two Pacific Division teams meet. The Suns led 71-70 at the break.

The trend continued into the third quarter when Ellis and Maggette had 12 points apiece for Golden State. But the Warriors couldn't stop Nash, who made four 3-pointers, to give Phoenix a 108-104 edge.

NOTES: Golden State's Ronny Turiaf had seven points and five rebounds in his first game since Nov. 30. ... Biedrins (lower back strain) will try to play Monday when Golden State hosts Boston. ... Phoenix hasn't won back-to-back games since Nov. 27-29.

Nash lifts play of ex-Bobcats

A year ago, Jason Richardson and Jared Dudley were Charlotte Bobcats, unaware of what an elite point guard could do for them and what winning regularly during an NBA season would feel like.

That feeling never fully arrived amid a chaotic transition last season to a team with issues. But now playing with a Steve Nash who is fully able to leverage this system's splendor, each is enjoying new successes.

Richardson, a go-to scorer his entire career, was uneasy about his place in a system full of scorers when Phoenix acquired him in a December trade. Nash was trying to figure out where to hit his new target.

The high-speed connection has been established, thanks to a preseason and a well-tailored offense.

"It's no different than a quarterback and receiver," coach Alvin Gentry said. "They have to feel comfortable with each other."

Since going scoreless Wednesday at Orlando, Richardson has led the Suns in scoring three times with uncanny similarity in chances. He took 16 shots and either seven or eight 3-pointers in each win, averaging 28.3 points.

His 72.7 percent 3-point shooting has the Suns shooting better from 3-point range (47.1 percent) than 18 other NBA teams shoot from the field.

Of the 11 shots Richardson made Monday at Philadelphia, Nash assisted on eight with an expanded repertoire of alley-oops and half-court passes.

"I felt bad at times, candidly, because I felt like I haven't done him any favors," Nash said. "But it's growing. It's fun to play with him. I want to be able to make the game easier for him. It's starting to develop."

Richardson came to Phoenix feeling like a fifth option behind "four Hall of Famers." He has learned he might be that fifth option, or the first, in any game. The Suns are 18-5 when he scores 20 points and 4-0 when he scores 30.

"They need me to step up scoring a little, and I'm being more aggressive," he said. "I wasn't expecting to score this much, but, hey, let's keep it going."

When Dudley came to Phoenix, he could not get playing time.

Dudley slipped into the rotation when Gentry became coach but never played with Nash.

As Dudley's value has emerged, that has changed. Gentry needed Dudley for all of the fourth quarter in Monday's win.

Usually, Gentry talks about how box scores do not reflect Dudley's impact. This time, it did. He tallied 13 points, four rebounds and two steals, scoring all of his points during a 20-11 Suns run that rallied them from a seven-point hole.

"If I play with Steve, you see . . . " Dudley said, as Leandro Barbosa began laughing next to him.

"I'm never going to play with a point guard most likely as good as Steve Nash. So if I can work every day to get to play with the starters some, that's what I'll do. It's a privilege to play with him."

Gentry does not automatically reinsert starters. He also played Barbosa the entire fourth quarter Monday, and Barbosa made a late 3-pointer that erased the 76ers' lead.

"We have faith in the guys on our bench that we'll go with them all the way down the stretch," Gentry said.

Dudley matched his career high with four 3-pointers, giving him five consecutive games with at least one. His defensive intensity puts him on the floor regardless of his shot. In only 21 minutes per game, Dudley has a team-best 1.4 steals average.

"You know he's going to give you everything he's got every single night," Gentry said.

Nash teaches Curry how it's done

When Warriors rookie Stephen Curry was yanked in the closing minute of the first half Friday night, a courtside fan stood up and yelled, "Take some notes, Curry."

Consider Friday's 123-101 loss to Phoenix learning experience No. 2 of the point guard's two-game career.

After making a costly turnover in the final 1 1/2 minutes of the Warriors' one-point loss to Houston on Wednesday, Curry got a game's worth of lessons from Steve Nash at the US Airways Center.

"Hopefully, Curry will learn a little from each game," coach Don Nelson said. "He saw a great point guard tonight, one that I know he would like to emulate."

Nash had 18 points, 20 assists and six rebounds, and he didn't make any of his three turnovers until the victory was clinched early in the second half. He showed Curry, who is often compared to a young version of the two-time league MVP, a nearly flawless example of how to run a winning team.

"I was pretty disappointed in our defensive coverages," Nelson said. "Nash is going to pick you apart whenever he can, and he certainly did. Offensively, we were inept.

"Other than that, we're going home, and it'll be Halloween."

Nash spread the ball around, putting Leandro Barbosa and Channing Frye in positions to score 24 and 22, respectively. He also set up Amar'e Stoudamire on most of his 20 points and Grant Hill on the majority of his 18.

"Nash was always in the right position to set his teammates up," Curry said. "He didn't really force anything, and made the shots when he had to take them. That's how he plays. That's why he's one of the best point guards in the game."

The Warriors got a standout game only from Monta Ellis, who went for 19 points, five rebounds and three assists, and was effective and active on the defensive end. Curry had 12 points, four assists and three turnovers.

"The rookie season is always tough, and Curry is going through the ups and downs of learning the game," Stephen Jackson said. "But he's going to be a great player in this league."

This wasn't the start the Warriors were looking for. The schedulemakers gave Golden State a tired Houston squad to open, and Phoenix marked the first of eight consecutive games against lottery teams. Yet, the Warriors sit at 0-2.

The Warriors weren't really in it against the Suns. They shot 42.4 percent, were outrebounded 47-38 and committed 22 turnovers that resulted in 31 points.

"We don't move the ball as well as we have in past years," Jackson said. "The chemistry we used to have is not even close, but I think it's up to the coaches to figure out what guys to have out there and get that chemistry back."

Kerr, Nash

Suns General Manager Steve Kerr will be in New York Thursday to secure a piece of the Suns' future.

Early draft preparation? No. A meeting at the NBA's offices? No.

He's in New York to meet with Steve Nash, who lives there in the summer.

Kerr will meet with the point guard and his agent, Bill Duffy, Thursday to discuss a contract extension and the the franchise's plan with the draft a week away, free agency two weeks away and numerous trade possibilities.

"It's more about letting each other know how we feel," Kerr said. "I can give him some ideas (of a plan), but there's no telling what can happen."

Nash, 35, is entering the final year of his contract, which would pay him $13,125,000 once a partial team option is exercised. Nash is eligible for a two-year extension but wants to see how the Suns' off-season moves unfold.

Steve skeptical of Suns' plan to sit him

"It's August, and Steve Nash is listening to his iPod as he walks to his car, so he really doesn't want to talk.

But I give it a shot anyway.

"Can I get you for five minutes?" I ask.

"You've got three," Nash says.

Nash isn't big-timing me. Nor is he being rude. He simply doesn't like to do interviews until after Labor Day. He figures if he does one, he'll have to do 100, and then he'll never get away.

But he's just finished his workout at US Airways Center, and I'm standing right in front of him, so he acquiesces.

Knowing my time limit, I come right to the point.

"What do you think of (general manager) Steve Kerr's plan to limit you to 70 games next season?"

Nash gives me that "you're-not-going-to-get-much-out-of-me smile" and then proceeds to, well, not give me much.

"We'll see how it goes," he says. "Those are great intentions, but is it realistic? We'll see."

Nash, 34, is receptive to the idea of getting more rest. He played in 81 of 82 games last year and averaged 34.3 minutes per game. To put that in perspective, Dallas point guard Jason Kidd, 35, was the only player older than Nash to log as many minutes.

Nash points out that San Antonio point guard Tony Parker had fresh legs for the playoffs last May in part because he missed three weeks and 13 games of the regular season with an ankle injury.

Of course, Parker is also eight years younger than Nash.

"I feel like you can always use the rest," Nash says. "If you can get to the postseason well rested, it's perfect. But you can't always afford to do that."

And there's the rub.

Is Phoenix good enough that it can sit Nash for 12 games?

"I don't know," Nash says. "Probably not."

There's no probably about it.

As good as newly imported backup Goran Dragic might become eventually, he'll be a rookie this season. Then consider that the Suns expect Shaquille O'Neal to come down with one ailment or another and miss around 30 games.

Finally, the Western Conference is a bear. Five teams are clearly superior to the Suns: The Los Angeles Lakers, New Orleans, San Antonio, Utah and Houston. Portland and Dallas are on the same plane.

Phoenix likely will make the playoffs if Nash plays just 70 games - there isn't a potential surprise team among the also-rans - but what chance will it have to get out of the first round if it's facing one of the conference's top three teams?

No, as well-intentioned as Kerr's idea may be, I'm guessing coach Terry Porter quickly will learn what Mike D'Antoni knew: Nash needs to be on the floor."

celebrity soccer helps Nash recover for the next NBA season?

I was saddened to learn yesterday morning that Team Canada was spanked by Slovenia at the Olympic basketball qualifier in Greece.
I think Canada would have done a lot better if Steve Nash was in the lineup, but Nash, of course, can't play because he is tired and banged up from playing so many seasons in the NBA.
Somehow, veteran NBAers like Dirk Nowitzki, Kobe Bryant, and the Raptors' own Rasho Nesterovic are able to drag their beaten-down bodies to pre-Olympic tournaments. Hell, former Raptors forward Jorge Garbajosa probably has kissed his NBA career away as a result of his commitment to Spanish basketball.
But Nash says he's too tired to play for Canada, and I guess we have to give him the benefit of the doubt. I certainly do, and I'm pleased that Steve is taking steps to rest and recuperate for the coming NBA season, like when he played in a celebrity soccer game a couple of weeks ago in New York City.
I, for one, encourage Steve to take further steps in his pursuit of rest and recuperation. There are plenty of celebrity marathon and decathlon events he can enter this summer ... in an effort to relax and recuperate.
Yes, it's important for Steve to get his priorities in order and that celebrity soccer game in New York was much more important than playing for his country at the Olympic basketball tournament.
Here's to you, Captain Canada ... in your quest for rest and recuperation.
Yes, I've been able to sleep well knowing that Steve Nash is getting the rest he so sorely needs.
I'm also pumped about this "Fan-Related Announcement" the boys at Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment Ltd. will be making today.
There are all sorts of rumours out there as to exactly what this announcement will entail...

Nash: Adversity helps for playoffs

The Suns had some humbug to their holidays, but in Boston it has been Christmas nearly every day of the season.

Fans remember what that was like. It was three years ago, when Phoenix's franchise turnaround shocked the NBA - and itself - with a 31-4 start. The buzz lasted another year when the Suns disproved beliefs that they would not contend without Amaré Stoudemire.

These days, Phoenix's 22-9 record and virtual tie for first place in the West causes consternation among fans and dissatisfaction in the locker room because it is not at the championship standard.

Nobody is having as much fun - and so be it, Suns guard Steve Nash says. That happens when you win as much as this era of Suns, who could beat Seattle at home Thursday night for their 200th victory since Nash's 2004 return to Phoenix.

Just like the club's 40th anniversary that it celebrates Thursday night, these Suns are grown up.

"That's forever gone," Nash said of that 2004-05 season when each game was "this exciting, beautiful gift" to the team and fans. "That's forever gone. Now we have to be grown men and professionals and not euphoric souls."

Nash said he did not foresee that this regular season would be less enjoyable for a team whose proving ground lies in the postseason. Nor is he envious that the lost magic can be seen in Boston's bounce.

"Been there, done that," Nash said. "Hopefully we're hardened and grizzled because of it and when the time comes, we'll be ahead of that place."

Phoenix faces a wide range of opponents on this homestand - a rebuilding team (Seattle), a rising threat (New Orleans), a division leader (Denver) and a struggling team (Indiana).

"No matter who we play, if we lose, it's a disaster for the fans," Nash said.

That minutia of analyzing losses grates on him. He always has said he does not read the newspaper, listen to sports radio or watch local sports television. He would rather lock in on each day's task and have his team apply the same focus.

"It's probably not as enjoyable thus far, and that's the part that we need to just keep battling for is to try to make it fun and not be so maybe overly critical or not so affected by people's opinions," Nash said. "Just worry about having fun every day. We've got talent. If we play hard and have fun, we're going to go far, no matter what; I guarantee that. That's the tough part. We've got to find a way to keep making it fun - make it more fun than it's been thus far."

Canada needs Nash

After qualifying for next year's Beijing showdown tournament, which could end up in Vancouver, Canadian men's basketball coach Leo Rautins is very happy with how his young team has come along.

They'll still have a long way to go to qualify, but if they do Rautins says he'll have a serious offer to make to Canada's best player, one Steve Nash.

"I think it's our obligation to qualify, and if we do we would then be in position to offer Steve the opportunity to play with what we believe will unquestionably be the most talented guys he will ever have played with in a Canadian jersey," said Rautins.

"If he wanted to come along next year and join us to make the [qualification] process that much easier, so much the better. But he knows we're here and I do my best to keep him informed of everything we're doing.

"I talk to him formally once a year about the issue. During the season when I see him [Rautins is also the TV colour man on some Raptor NBA games] I just say 'hi', ask him how he's feeling and how things are going."

Nash knows there is a possibility that Canada could host the 12-team FIBA qualifying, which would produce outstanding entertainment, with Vancouver and Toronto the only real considerations, although Edmonton seems to be able to make a success out of almost anything.

However there are other countries which will no doubt be interested in hosting in July when three of 12 teams will make the Olympics. The FIBA decision will almost certainly depend upon what sort of money guarantees they can wring out of the hosts.

"We'd love for it to be in Canada and I hope someone in Vancouver or Toronto steps up, but that's something that has to be determined by others," said Rautins, whose side finished fifth in the recent Americas tournament with a young, big team that was literally begging for a point guard. Nash happens to be the best in the world.

But Nash, in part to prove his former employer Mavericks owner Mark Cuban wrong (he said the Victoria native wears down in the playoffs), prefers to use the summer to train, get away from the game and prepare for the pressure he carries in Phoenix. And who can blame him? He's worn the Canadian jersey many times and performed miracles in it. There's also the small matter of roughly $11 million he gets per season from the Suns. That's where his first allegiance must lie.

But when asked what the most pressing need for his young team is, Rautins was quick to answer "a point guard," and if you saw this team play last week you know he wasn't just trying a different pressure tactic on Nash.

"Jermaine Anderson did a great job for us, I can't say enough about him," said Rautins of a guy who at times would dribble out of the gym if you opened the doors of the building.

"His assist to turnover ratio was one of the best in the tournament and he's an outstanding outside shooter, but the point is just not his natural position. Having said that, I like him at the point, but more off the ball where he can get more shots."

The team cannot be discussed without mentioning Montreal's Samuel Dalembert, who got his Canadian passport just a couple of weeks before last week's Vegas tournament. The 6-foot-11 forward has added a whole new dimension to this team, anchoring a group of big men that stands up well to the international format of a lot of games in a short period of time.

"Sam gives us that big body defensive presence Canada hasn't had in 10, 15,20, 30 years even," said Rautins. "He changes the whole complexion of our team ... and he's such a good team guy as well."

With Dalembert blocking shots and making getting through the lane a dangerous business, there's no telling how good Canada could become. They will be better next year regardless with guys like Denhem Brown, Olu Famutimi, Juan Mendez and Vancouver's Levon Kendall all going to Europe for pro experience. But if ever Nash would walk through that crack he's left open in the almost-closed door to the national team, then you're likely to tear Jamaal Magloire away from his Caribbean beauty pageant and land Rowan Barrett as well.

Then you could almost mention the words "medal" and "Canada" in the same sentence.