The Los Angeles Lakers are going to have veteran point guard Steve Nash back in the lineup soon, and Dwight Howard feels the former two-time MVP will have a strong impact on the team's defense when he returns.
The Lakers are currently among the league's best in scoring, putting up 102.0 points per game and are dominate on the glass with 46.0 rebounds per game, but give up 99.3 points a game to opponents on a nightly basis.
"Most of the time our half-court defense has been pretty good. That teams that kill us [do it] with fast-break points, which on the stats sheet show up as points in the paint, and it makes it seem like we're not playing defense.
"If we can control the ball on the offensive end, play the way we want to play on offense and get a good shot every time, then we get back and set our defense, which for the most part is pretty good. When we turn the ball over, it puts us in a bad position to get back because we're running a play and then losing the ball, our momentum is going this way and they're going back the other way. We just really have to focus on getting a good shot every time, using the clock shot to our advantage."
Nash's defense has been considered an Achilles heel for the veteran guard, but Howard may have a point.
With Nash on the floor the team won't be putting so much energy on the offense. Nash's penetration will draw in defenses and leave space for shooters like Kobe Bryant, Metta World Peace, Jodie Meeks, Antawn Jamison and others to open on the perimeter. This would conceivably bring an end to the one-on-one basketball that the team has been resorted to using.
It remains uncertain whether or not Nash will ultimately be a game-changer for the Lakers, but it's hard to imagine that a former two-time MVP can't bring a considerable amount of improvement to the offense.
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