Steve Nash suffered another setback after hurting his back again, creating speculation that the veteran point guard will soon announce his retirement.
But in an interview with the ESPN Los Angeles, Nash reiterated that he is still optimistic that he can still play this season. The former two-time Most Valuable Player said that he already expected that he will have back issues this season, but he insisted that it is not as severe as what most people are thinking.
"I expected things to happen. It's inevitable with everything I've gone through that there's going to be issues adapting back to the game," Nash said. "On the other hand, I did get through seven or eight hard days well, which I didn't do last year. So there is some improvement, and if I can adapt continually once I heal up here, I'll be back on course."
Nash, who holds a career average of 14.3 points to go along with 8.5 assists and 3.0 rebounds, only played in 15 games due to back issues along with knee and hamstring injuries. But while his back is still iffy heading into the season, the veteran playmaker remains optimistic that he can get back on the court.
"Eventually you've got to play; that's what we're here for," Nash said. "I've definitely had a struggle the last week, but I think I [need to] stay optimistic and see what I can do this week to get better and get back on the court."
Lakers coach Byron Scott, who will be entering his first season as the coach of his former team during his playing days, has been very optimistic about Nash's health, but he is now unsure about the 40-year-old's future with the team.
"I really don't know what the future holds for Steve right now," Scott said of Nash, who will be playing in the final year of his three-year, $28 million deal with the Lakers. "The one thing I do know, like I said, in talking to him, he wants to play. He wants to play badly."
With Nash still struggling to get healthy, Jeremy Lin, who was acquired by the Lakers in an offseason trade with the Houston Rockets is now a lock to start for the team in the 2014-15 NBA season.
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