The news of Steve Nash leaving the Suns to join the rival Lakers came as a shock to most in the Phoenix area, and now all eyes are on Los Angeles to see how Nash and his new teammates respond to each other. Kobe Bryant has never had an elite point guard to play with, but that will all change in the coming months.
While hoops experts can make all the predictions they want about Nash in Hollywood, one player currently on the Suns has been on both teams and knows how they operate behind the scenes: Shannon Brown.
Will Nash, Kobe and Co. all get along?
Here's the latest from Vince Marotta of Arizona Sports:
"(Nash) will be able to get Kobe Bryant the ball in the spots where he's most effective and where he can help the team win," Brown told ESPN Radio. "He can also score himself, so you know he's a great addition to that team."
"His work ethic is unbelievable and the way he takes care of his body is great," Brown said. "He's a good player. Some of the passes he was throwing out there, the way he understands the game, the way he sees things before they happen -- he's always ahead of what's going on."
Despite the fact that Bryant has played most of his 16- year career without a "true" point guard next to him, Brown feels that this duo will compliment each other nicely.
"Steve is a pass-first, second and third type of point guard and Kobe is a shooting guard and he likes to score the ball, so that's a perfect situation for both of those guys," Brown said. "Steve is going to give Kobe a lot of points and Kobe is going to give Steve a lot of assists."
Brown would know better than anyone how the two superstars will mesh in Los Angeles, but it will certainly take some time for the Lakers to adjust to Nash's free-flowing style of play. It's pretty safe to say that Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum should see their numbers improve substantially on the offensive end, but if Bryant isn't happy, no one's happy. And that's when things could take a turn for the worst.
For more on the Suns, head over to Bright Side of the Sun.