Steve Nash Reveals Why He Decided Not to Sign with the Raptors in 2012

Former two-time MVP Steve Nash nearly signed with the Toronto Raptors in 2012 but his divorce forced him to ink a deal with the Los Angeles Lakers

Jun 5, 2019; Oakland, CA, USA; NBA former player Steve Nash enters the stadium before game three of the 2019 NBA Finals between the Golden State Warriors and the Toronto Raptors at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images | Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

Steve Nash wanted to play in Toronto.

Had circumstances been different in the summer of 2012, the two-time MVP might have signed with the Raptors. It would have been a homecoming of sorts for the Canadian superstar, who entered free agency as the top prize for a Raptors organization searching for a lead point guard.

“To play in Canada, to play for the Raptors, to play in front of those fans, in that area every night would have been amazing,” Nash told Open Gym. “If the timing was better, it would have been fantastic to experience it.”

But timing wasn’t on Toronto’s side. Nash was going through a divorce and wanted to stay close to his children, who remained in Phoenix as he prepared to leave the Suns.

“I was going through a tricky part of my life,” Nash said. “While you’re going through that transition there’s a lot of unknowns. You’re trying to figure out how I can see my kids as often as possible. That was really the reason I didn’t end up in Toronto was because I wanted to be close to my kids.”

Toronto made a hard push to land Nash. The organization even recruited Wayne Gretzky to voice a video urging Nash to make a homecoming.

“It was so impactful it moved Steve to tears,” former Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo said in an interview with Open Gym.

Ultimately, Nash chose to sign elsewhere, inking a three-year, $28 million deal with the Los Angeles Lakers. He joined Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, and Dwight Howard on what was supposed to be a superteam in Los Angeles.

In hindsight, Toronto may have dodged a bullet. Nash never looked the same after leaving Phoenix, playing just two injury-plagued seasons with the Lakers before retiring. His decision forced the Raptors to pivot, leading them to call the Houston Rockets and trade for a young point guard named Kyle Lowry.