By David Lord and Mike Fisher -- DallasBasketball.com
      We’re become more and more convinced that Nash’s future in Dallas will take care of itself.
      Why? Because of how well Nash is taking care of Dallas’ present.
NASH’S DB.COM PAGE
MAVS-WOLVES BOX
      Saturday, Nash keyed a 119-112 home win over Minnesota with 20 points, 13 assists, one turnover and five rebounds. The effort marks the .. the fifth straight double-double for Nash and his 11th double-double of the season. The Mavs are 9-2 in those games, and it ain’t no coincidence.
      Nash helped The Big Three breathe life back into their combined rep (yea!) by combining for 72 points. He played all 24 minutes of the second half, and still involved the rest of the fellas.
      “We need to be aware of whatever mismatches we have,’’ Nash said. “Sometimes that’s going to be for (Nowitzki, Finley and Nash). Sometimes it’s going to be for the Antoines/Antawns (Walker and Jamison). We’ve got a lot of people on the floor who can score.’’
      But Nash’s excellence as the triggerman is critical (we think more critical than Walker’s excellence as an ignition-starting point forward, but that’s an analysis for another day). Don’t think Mark Cuban doesn’t appreciate it, either. Still, the stories alluding to some sort of Nash-vs.-Mavs coming conflict keep bubbling.
      We’ll pop the bubbles with some facts: Nash has the ability after this season to "opt out" of his contract and become a free agent. With that as the only real basis, we continue to read articles that speculate that Nash is in various degrees of unhappiness with his Mavericks team. They say that much of it is due to the Mavs "unwillingness" to offer him a new contract already. Some have him intrigued with possibly playing in Toronto. Others deride the Mavs for not taking care of the situation and letting it fester, so to speak. Every article seems to feel that this will be a major trouble spot for the Mavs.
      OK, OK, some of those facts:
      FACT 1. Steve Nash has an existing contract with the Mavs that extends through the 2004-05 season and that will pay him $5,750,000 in that final (04-05) season. If he wishes, after this season is over, he may "opt out" of that final year and become an unrestricted free agent, available to sign with any team he chooses.
      FACT 2. When looking at the contracts of comparable NBA point guards, it seems clear that Nash is underpaid. In 2004-05, Kidd and Marbury will top the point guard salary list at about $14.7 million. All-around talents such as Baron Davis and Steve Francis will come in next, at about $11.3 million in 04-05. Mike Bibby, who plays a similar role to Nash on a similar style team, will make $10.5 million.
      FACT 3. If Nash "opts out" of his contract, the Mavs will not be required to protect him (as one of their 8) in the expansion draft for the new Charlotte franchise next summer. After opting out, he could choose to re-sign with Dallas, thereby effectively allowing them to retain a core of 9 rather than 8.
      FACT 4. If they were so inclined, could the Mavs rework Nash's 04-05 contract in advance? No. According to the rules of the NBA's Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), a team over the Salary Cap may not renegotiate a contract.
      FACT 5. If they were so inclined, could the Mavs extend Nash's contract and thereby give him a raise? Yes. However, Nash would still receive $5.75M in 04-05, then the subsequent extension years would be limited by CBA rules to an annual increase of 12.5%. Thus, if Nash agreed to an extension, his salary with the Mavs would be limited to about $6.5M in 05-06, $7.3M in 06-07, $8.2M in 07-08, and so on, still leaving his representatives able to argue that he is underpaid in relation to other point guards of his caliber.
      FACT 6. If Nash "opts out" and then signs a new contract with the Mavs, could he be paid like other top point guards in the NBA? Yes. If Nash opts out, then the Mavs would have "Larry Bird rights" regarding Nash, which would allow them to re-sign him for any amount up to the maximum salary allowed by CBA rules.
      FACT 7. When his key players have become free agents, Mark Cuban has always paid the money to keep the team together. ALWAYS. Finley. Nowitzki. LaFrentz. Even Najera and Bradley. As vital as Nash has been to the success of the Mavericks, there is absolutely no reason to think that Cuban will suddenly start pinching pennies and let him get away.
      All in all, we see the ongoing hubbub about Nash's contract status as much ado about very little. There is no story here, not yet. It is merely NBA life as usual, playing itself out according to the rules.
      Oh, and Steve Nash living his NBA life as usual, playing lights out.