'Painfully humble' Nash paved way for Curry, Harden

BOSTON - There were few times in Steve Nash's basketball career when he wasn't an underdog.

Before players like Stephen Curry and James Harden were captivating NBA audiences with a free-wheeling, open-court style of play, Nash, a 6-foot-3 Canadian, was laying the groundwork for what would become the league's "point guard era."

From starring at high school in Victoria, British Columbia to playing college ball at tiny Santa Clara in California, Nash was never supposed to an innovator in a game long dominated by much taller players.

But after spending nearly two decades in the NBA, becoming a two-time MVP, eight-time All-Star and one of its most creative passers along the way, it's undeniable that Nash helped to remake both his position and the way it is played today.

When he's inducted in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame on Friday, even the player described as "painfully humble" by former teammate Grant Hill won't be able to deny his impact on the game.

"I recognize that it's not a common listing on someone's resume," the 44-year-old Nash said on Wednesday.

He will be inducted by Don Nelson, the coach he blossomed under while playing in Dallas for six seasons, from 1998 to 2004. But he is equally thankful for the time he spent in the fast-paced offense of Mike D'Antoni in Phoenix, who coached the Suns when Nash won the first of his back-to-back league MVP honors in 2004-05 and 2005-06.

"I'm very grateful," Nash said. "I played on some great teams with great coaches."

Nash will share the stage with Hill, a teammate in Phoenix, as well as former Suns executive Rick Welts, now the president and chief operating officer of the Golden State Warriors.

Welts not only sees a lot of Nash in Curry, he also remembers how quickly Nash's game went to a different level in Phoenix.

"You have to remember the Phoenix Suns won 29 games (in 2003-04) and traded their best player, Stephon Marbury, to the Knicks right before the July 1 signing of Steve Nash to a Suns' contract," Welts said.

"That 29-win team won 62 games the next year still the biggest swing in the history of the NBA. So he and Mike D'Antoni reinvented the game of basketball."

While Nash could be a prolific scorer, his legacy is his ability to distribute the ball to his teammates. He racked up 10,335 career assists, third on the NBA's all-time list.

Hill said to play for Nash was to play for a teammate who was unselfish to a fault.

"It was never about him," Hill said. "I think with him, I think if he could have it his way he'd never shoot. It was always about his teammates and making them look good. Sometimes as teammates we had to encourage him and say, 'Look man, for us to win you gotta shoot.'"

Nash said he now has a deeper appreciation for his humble beginnings.

"I was an underdog," he said. "I scrapped and clawed my way into college and did the same again in the NBA. I just never stopped; I kept working my way up.

"Eventually, I had the type of career that allowed me to be here. But when I came into the league, I don't think there was anyone that would have thought this was the effect of my playing skills and ability.

"It takes a weekend like this to look back and share the celebration with all the people who made my career possible."

Associated Press

(China Daily 09/08/2018 page11)