Steve Nash Hopes the Richardson Trade Doesn't Mean They're 'Blowing Up' the Suns

When a trade goes down like Wednesday's five-player deal between the Suns and the Bobcats, it has ramifications beyond those of the players involved simply changing zip codes. The teams have to make the adjustment of bringing the new players into their family unit, and the players that remain need to come to grips with the fact that people they trusted on the court and befriended off of it are no longer a part of the family.

It seems that no one realizes this more than Steve Nash.

Nash will tell you himself that he was pretty stunned by the news of the trade, as Raja Bell was his best friend on the team, and left town without a proper goodbye. (Bell texted Nash from the airport, as he didn't want to wake him from his pregame nap.) Nash admitted after Wednesday night's game against the Lakers that he was "emotionally drained," and his 2-of-12 shooting backed up that assertion.

The surprise of the loss of a close friend being shipped out of town without warning likely makes one think about what else might be in the pipeline as far as changes are concerned.

Even in his surprised and emotional state, Nash wondered if there were more deals on the horizon for this team that might send them into a rebuilding direction, which is one that he would obviously not be happy with.

"I hope it's not a situation where they are just trying to blow it up," Nash said. "I think we still have got a chance to be a really good team. There's time to incorporate the new guys."

This sounds almost like an open plea to Steve Kerr, and for Nash's sake, let's hope that Kerr is listening. If you look closely at the last two deals Kerr's made though, it would appear that he's looking towards winning this season and not sometime in the distant future.

Nobody would trade for Shaquille O'Neal in the (likely) final two years of his career if they were in a rebuilding mode. So there's that. And when you look at the Richardson trade, the Suns improved at the two offensively, while probably breaking even on defense and losing a little depth by sending Diaw out of town.

While it's unclear if Kerr is done dealing (because honestly, the team still needs a backup point guard and a quality big to defend, rebound, and spell Shaq if they truly want to contend), the moves he's made so far aren't those of someone who's looking to blow things up and start rebuilding.

If Amare Stoudemire is dealt before the end of the season, however, (it's not as crazy as it sounds; it's been tossed around and Amare will be a free agent like everyone else in 2010) and the team doesn't get a boat load of talent in return that helps them get to the Finals, then Nash's greatest fears will have been realized.

(Oh, and at that point, he'll almost certainly bail in 2010 as well.)