Steve Nash didn’t want to talk about his legacy, even if those covering the final press conference of his great career wanted him to reflect on the impact he’s had on the game.
“I’m not a huge fan of the legacy game to be fair,” he said. “I think it’s incredibly flattering and I’m humbled every time someone says I’ve had an impact on the game or on Canadians playing the game. I think a lot of people had a huge impact on me, as well. That’s the nature of this game. People make their way to the highest level in the game and they make a difference for those who come after them.”
But Nash did say he was touched by the huge outpouring of support that followed the announcement of his retirement Saturday on The Players Tribune, particularly from other NBA players.
“To walk away from the game with that respect and admiration is the greatest gift,” he said. “To get it from your peers and guys you admire — and I’m looking forward to turning on the TV and watching them play for the next 10 years — that to me is very, very special.”
Although his back still hurts “every day”, Nash said he feels privileged to have played the game for as long as he has. Had he played in the 1980s, he said, he may not have played past 30. He’s now 40.
“Being able to play until I was 40 years old,” he said, “I’ve rode this thing well past where my luck should have allowed me to get.”
The two-time league MVP acknowledged “a lot of disappointment” in leaving the game without an NBA title, but he tried to focus on the positives.
“I definitely left it all out there,” he said. “There’s been a number of players who’ve had tremendous careers who haven’t won a title and they probably feel similarly to how I do.”
Nash said he needs some distance from the game before he decides what his future holds — “maybe six to 12 months from now I’ll have an answer for you, I don’t know” — but he hopes that his story of making the NBA out of Victoria, with just one scholarship offer, may help encourage kids to take up the sport.
“My story is something that kids can relate to and learn from and set an example of not how anything is possible, but one way to make the game.”
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