Bryan Colangelo is disappointed the Toronto Raptors were unable to lure Steve Nash, feeling his team presented the best offer to the free agent point guard.
The 38-year-old will suit up for the Los Angeles Lakers next season after working out a sign and trade with the Phoenix Suns. Nash was also considering offers from the Knicks and Raptors.
“Our financial offer and the long-term opportunity for Steve were certainly better, but I can’t fault a guy for putting his family ahead of everything else,” Colangelo told ESPN.com in his first public comments since Nash’s decision. “The fact that he will be competing for a title made this easy for him. I’m still disappointed, but I completely understand his decision. As a friend, I wish him well.”
According to the ESPN article, the Raptors were the first team to meet with Nash when he became a free agent on July 1. The Raptors held a lavish in-person presentation for Nash at Raptors co-owner Larry Tanenbaum’s Central Park apartment that included a video compilation narrated by Nash’s hero, Wayne Gretzky.
The video made a strong impression on Nash, who reportedly held back tears as the video chronicled his journey from his days at Santa Clara University to his time with Team Canada and eventually, the NBA.
“They wanted us to close the deal right then,” Nash’s agent Bill Duffy told Stein.
“It was like watching a Hall of Fame video.”
After a hectic first day on the free market, Nash was reportedly deciding between the Raptors and Knicks.
“I was really close at times to being a Raptor or Knick,” Nash told ESPN. “Really close. I’ve always wanted to play for the Knicks, and to go home to Toronto was a dream opportunity in a lot of different ways.”
Soon, Nash’s suitors drastically increased and his agent held talks with the Lakers, Brooklyn Nets, and Miami Heat.
Nash didn’t believe the Lakers were a legitimate possibility until GM Mitch Kupchak convinced him that ownership was willing to give him the third year on a deal that he was seeking.
“I never would have thought that the Lakers would have come into the picture,” Nash said. “But when [the Lakers] did and I started to think about it, about how I could be close to the kids and at the same time be on a contender, it was a perfect fit.”
Nash agreed to a three-year, $27 million deal with Los Angeles after working out a sign-and-trade with his former team, the Phoenix Suns.
Colangelo and the Raptors quickly moved to plan B, acquiring Houston Rockets guard Kyle Lowry the next day in exchange for a protected future lottery pick and guard/forward Gary Forbes.
The Nash deal and the Lowry trade will both become official on July 11.
