Central Notes: Nash, Cavaliers, Jackson

The Cavaliers were interested in signing Steve Nash if he had reached a buyout with the Lakers, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Cleveland made it clear to Nash’s agent, Bill Duffy, that it had interest in Nash after the trade deadline if he could strike  a deal with L.A. Cavaliers’ GM David Griffin and Raja Bell, the team’s director of player administration, are both fans of Nash and were interested in having him play some backup minutes to Kyrie Irving. However, Nash’s response was that he only wanted to come back as a Laker.

There’s more from the Central Division:

  • After a slow start, the CavaliersDavid Blatt has proven he can handle the challenge of a high-profile team, writes Moke Hamilton of SNY.tv. Hamilton points out that Blatt isn’t coaching the team he expected to when he was first hired. The acquisitions of LeBron James and Kevin Love changed the equation, as did an injury to Anderson Varejao and the trade of Dion Waiters. After a 19-20 start brought rumors about his job security, Blatt led the Cavaliers to a turnaround that has them second in the Eastern Conference playoff race.
  • The Pistons have said they want to hold on to free agent guard Reggie Jackson, but Susan Bible of Basketball Insiders isn’t sure that’s the best move. Jackson, who was acquired from Oklahoma City in a deadline-day trade, has shown displays of individual brilliance since the deal, but the Pistons have struggled, losing 10 in a row at one point. Jackson praises Stan Van Gundy, Detroit’s coach and president of basketball operations, saying he can “help me on this journey to be one of the best point guards ever,” but Bible worries Jackson may be too focused on individual goals rather than team ones.
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