Nash

The new Steve Nash is a playoff-tested veteran on the other side of 30 who will be called upon to make the rest of his young teammates better. In Marion, Johnson, Richardson and Stoudemire, Nash might have more talent around him than he did in Dallas.

Nash should stay fresh, because Leandro Barbosa is a capable backup, which will prevent Nash from having to play 40 minutes a night.

His biggest challenge is going to be finding the opportunities to get his, while still finding enough shots for four other players who averaged better than 16 points a game last year.

But then, who's more experienced in that regard than the guy that was distributing to Finley, Nowitzki, Walker and Jamison a year ago?

Assuming he stays healthy, Nash will find himself at the helm of one of the league's most improved teams this season, and he'll be a big reason why.

Marion

The Suns had a tremendous offseason, acquiring freee agent point guard Steve Nash and shooting guard Quentin Richardson to join an already talented cast that includes emerging stars Joe Johnson, Shawn Marion and Amare Stoudemire.

The dirty work started last season, when the Suns astutely cleared cap room by trading Anfernee Hardaway and Stephon Marbury to New York for the expiring contract of Antonio McDyess. Later they enticed Charlotte to take Jahidi White in the expansion draft. As a result, the Suns had the bankroll to rebuild their backcourt.

They emerged with an All-Star in Nash, a known quantity in Phoenix, where he began his career. A career 42 percent 3-point shooter, Nash has averaged better than 14 points in each of the last four seasons. Last year, he had a career-best 8.8 assists.

In Richardson, the former Clipper, they get a young player who scored 17.2 points and played both ends of the floor. He's also one of the top rebounders at his position.

Richardson and 6-7 Joe Johnson will be engaged in a pretty good training camp battle, considering Johnson is coming off his career-best season (16.7 ppg) and played 40 minutes a night last season. They can play together when Marion needs a breather.

Marion, another 6-7 athlete, seldom does. He filled the stat sheet with 19.0 points, 9.3 rebounds and better than two steals per game last year. He's one of the league's most gifted leapers.

Stoudemire might be ready to join the Duncan, Garnett class soon. He averaged 20.6 points and 9.0 rebounds last season, as well as a team-high 1.6 blocks per game. He turns 22 in November, and has only scratched the surface of his development.

The Suns have plenty of able-bodied big men, including returning starter Jake Voskuhl, 19-year-old Pole Maciej Lampe, former first-rounder Zarko Caparkapa and 7-0 free agent Stephen Hunter.

This should be a fun team to watch. Richardson, Johnson and Marion will run the floor knowing that point guards Nash and Leandro Barbosa can get them the ball, hit the open jumper or send it to 3-point specialist Casey Jacobsen.

Under Nash's direction, the Suns are the best candidate to unseat one of the West's top eight seeds from a year ago, which puts pressure on the Lakers, Memphis and Dallas, who will probably have to battle for survival in April.