Steve Nash: Lakers will fly under radar this season

With Dwight Howard's decision nearly a month in the past and their roster beginning to fill out, the Los Angeles Lakers have fallen a bit out of the spotlight in recent weeks. The attention will be back, for certain; future points of debate range from Kobe Bryant's health to the team's first matchup with the Rockets to its coaching situation.

If the Lakers play well, it will be a story. If they play poorly, it will be a story. If they're mediocre, it will be a story.

They'll be scrutinized, just as they always are, but for now, Steve Nash seems to think his team is flying under the radar. In an interview with NBA.com's Lang Whittaker, the veteran point guard said that he thinks people are counting his team out, which, he said, is just fine.

"We've got a lot of new pieces, we've got guys coming off injuries, myself included," said Nash. "So we've got to find out where everyone's health is, and then figure out each other and play together, and hopefully we can surprise some people."

Maybe they will surprise people, and with expectations set lower than they have been for years, a positive surprise won't necessarily be difficult. However, the team's success will depend largely on the health of its older players, Nash's included, and the point guard told NBA.com that he feels "not quite 100 percent." He said he hopes to get to that point in about three to four weeks.

That said, Nash is spending Tuesday in something of an honorary tryout for Inter Milan, a soccer team based in Italy. The tryout will take place in the U.S. before the team plays a series of games stateside.