For other people named Stephen Nash, see Stephen Nash (disambiguation).

Steve Nash

OC OBC

Nash in 2023

Personal information

Born 7 February 1974 (age 50)

Johannesburg, South Africa

Nationality Canadian

Listed height 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)

Listed weight 178 lb (81 kg)[1]

High school St. Michaels

(Victoria, British Columbia)

College Santa Clara (1992–1996)

NBA draft 1996: 1st round, 15th overall pick

Selected by the Phoenix Suns

Playing career 1996–2015

Position Point guard

Number 13, 10

Coaching career 2020–present

Career history

As player:

Phoenix Suns
1996–1998

Dallas Mavericks
1998–2004

Phoenix Suns
2004–2012

Los Angeles Lakers

As coach:

Brooklyn Nets
2020–2022

Career highlights and awards

 8× NBA All-Star (2002, 2003, 2005–2008, 2010, 2012)

 3× All-NBA First Team (2005–2007)

 2× All-NBA Second Team (2008, 2010)

 2× All-NBA Third Team (2002, 2003)

 5× NBA assists leader (2005–2007, 2010, 2011)

 4× 50–40–90 club (2006, 2008–2010)

 No. 13 retired by Phoenix Suns

 NBA 75th Anniversary Team

 2× FIBA AmeriCup MVP (1999, 2003)

 Lou Marsh Trophy (2005)

 3× Lionel Conacher Award (2002, 2005, 2006)

 2× WCC Player of the Year (1995, 1996)

 2× First-team All-WCC (1995, 1996)

 No. 11 retired by Santa Clara Broncos

Career statistics

Points 17,387 (14.3 ppg)

Rebounds 3,642 (3.0 rpg)

Assists 10,335 (8.5 apg)

Stats at NBA.com

Stats at Basketball Reference

Basketball Hall of Fame as player

FIBA Hall of Fame as player

hide

Medals

Representing Canada
 FIBA AmeriCup

1999 San Juan National team

2001 Neuquén National team

Universiade

1991 Sheffield National team

1993 Buffalo National team

Stephen John Nash OC OBC (born 7 February 1974) is a Canadian professional basketball coach and former player who most
recently served as head coach of the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played 18 seasons in the
NBA, where he was an eight-time All-Star and a seven-time All-NBA selection. Nash was a two-time NBA Most Valuable
Player while playing for the Phoenix Suns.

Nash grew up playing several different sports, and after a successful high school basketball career in British Columbia, he earned a
scholarship to Santa Clara University in California. In his four seasons with the Broncos, the team made three NCAA
tournament appearances, and he was twice named the West Coast Conference (WCC) Player of the Year. Nash graduated from
Santa Clara as the team's all-time leader in assists and was taken as the 15th pick in the 1996 NBA draft by the Phoenix Suns. He
had minimal impact and was traded to the Dallas Mavericks in 1998. By his fourth season with the Mavericks, he was voted to his
first NBA All-Star Game and earned his first All-NBA selection. Together with Dirk Nowitzki and Michael Finley, Nash led the
Mavericks to the Western Conference Finals the following season. He became a free agent after the 2003–04 season and returned
to the Phoenix Suns.

In the 2004–05 season, Nash led the Suns to the Western Conference finals and was named the league's MVP. He was named
MVP again in the 2005–06 season and was runner-up for a third consecutive MVP to Nowitzki in 2006–07. He is widely regarded as
one of the greatest point guards of all time.[2][3][4] Nash led the league in assists and free throw percentage at various points in his
career. He is also ranked as one of the top players in NBA league history in three-point shooting, free throw shooting, total assists,
and assists per game. In 2018, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Nash has been honoured for his contributions to various philanthropic causes. In 2006, he was named by Time as one of the 100
most influential people in the world. Nash was appointed to the Order of Canada in 2007 and invested to the order in 2016, and was
awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of Victoria in 2008. Nash has been a co-owner of the Vancouver
Whitecaps FC of Major League Soccer (MLS) since the team entered the league in 2011. From 2012 to 2019, he served as general
manager of the Canadian men's national basketball team, for whom he played from 1991 to 2003, making one Olympic appearance
and being twice named FIBA AmeriCup MVP. In 2021, Nash was named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team.

Early life
Nash was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, to a Welsh mother, Jean, and English father, John, on 7 February 1974. [5][6][7][8] His
family moved to Regina, Saskatchewan, when he was 18 months old, before settling in Victoria, British Columbia.[8] He, therefore,
holds British as well as Canadian citizenship. Before the family settled in Canada, his father played professional soccer in various
parts of the world.[8] Nash often played soccer and ice hockey with his younger brother Martin, and he did not start playing basketball
until he was 12 or 13 years old;[9] he also played rugby and lacrosse.[10] In grade eight, he told his mother that one day he would play
in the NBA and become a star.[8] He was a neighbour to future NHL stars Russ and Geoff Courtnall, who used to babysit him and
played soccer coached by Nash's father.[11]

Nash originally attended Mount Douglas Secondary School in Saanich, British Columbia, but after his grades began to drop, his
parents decided to enroll him at St. Michaels University School, a private school in Victoria.[12] There, he starred in basketball,
soccer, and rugby union. While playing basketball during his senior season, Nash averaged 21.3 points, 11.2 assists, and
9.1 rebounds per game.[13] In the 1991–92 season, he led his team in his final year to the British Columbia AAA provincial
championship title, and was named the province's Player of the Year. [14]
College career
Although Nash's high school coach, Ian Hyde-Lay, sent letters of inquiry and highlight reels to over 30 American universities, Nash
was not recruited by any university,[8] until Santa Clara coach Dick Davey requested video footage of the young guard. After
watching Nash in person, Davey said he "was nervous as hell just hoping that no one else would see him. It didn't take a Nobel
Prize winner to figure out this guy's pretty good. It was just a case of hoping that none of the big names came around." [12] However,
Davey also told Nash he was "the worst defensive player" he had ever seen. [12]

Nash was awarded a scholarship by Santa Clara for the 1992–93 season. At the time, it had been five years since the Broncos
appeared in the NCAA tournament. That changed when Nash led the Broncos to a WCC tournament title and an upset win over
the No. 2 seeded Arizona in the first round of the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament.[8] In that game, Nash scored six
straight free throws in the last 30 seconds of the contest.[12] Although Temple defeated Santa Clara in the next round, the 1992–93
campaign was considered a successful one. However, the Broncos failed to sustain the momentum the following season and only
managed a 5–7 record in the conference.[8] The team rebounded in the 1994–95 season, with Nash being named Conference Player
of the Year and the Broncos topping the WCC.[8] Featuring the league leader for scoring and assists in Nash, the Broncos returned
to the NCAA tournament, but Mississippi State defeated them.[8] After the season, Nash contemplated turning professional and
decided against it when he learned that he would probably not be considered as a first-round pick in the 1995 NBA draft.[8]

My heroes were Isiah Thomas, Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson. I think they were just so competitive and creative. Especially Isiah, he
was somebody that wasn't very tall. He had played the game mostly on the floor and it made me feel that I could find a way to do
the same.

—Steve Nash[9]

In the 1995–96 season, Nash began attracting the attention of the national media and professional scouts. He had spent the
previous summer honing his skills, playing with the Canadian national team and working out with established NBA players Jason
Kidd and Gary Payton.[8] Santa Clara again captured the WCC title, and for the second consecutive year, Nash was named
Conference Player of the Year, the first Bronco to repeat since Kurt Rambis.[13] He scored 28 points in leading the No. 10 seed
Broncos to a first-round upset win over No. 7 seed Maryland, but then the Broncos were eliminated by Kansas. Nash's
performances ensured that he earned an honourable