Steve Nash has accomplished more in his NBA career than most players could ever dream of. After two phenomenal seasons as the league’s Most Valuable Player, Nash is seeking his third consecutive award. He would join a microscopic list of players who have ever accomplished this feat. This elite group includes only Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell and Larry Bird. What makes this Canadian basketball player tick? How do you produce running games night after night? What does he know that the rest of the league doesn’t?

Nash is leading his Phoenix Suns to a 44-14 record (76%) this season, second only to the Dallas Mavericks. Every night he contributes 18.9 points, 11.8 assists and 3.3 rebounds to his breaking team. He is the engine that drives this Western Conference scoring machine.

So what is it about Steve Nash that makes him the best player in the NBA for the last 2+ years? The following is a collection of thoughts, quotes, and opinions on what makes Steve Nash tick.

• Hand-eye coordination—Steve Nash has shown amazing hand-eye coordination, agility and balance that allow him to take shots from almost impossible angles. As a young man, Nash was a talented soccer and hockey player, and both his father and brother played professional soccer.
• athletic—TV analyst Bill Walton calls Nash the “least athletic player” in the NBA. I wonder how Nash, who plays in the ultra-athletic NBA, can be named the best player of him being UNathletic. I personally loved Walton as a player, but maybe the wear and tear of the 500 Grateful Dead concerts is taking its toll.
• Ride—Some athletes are driven by a life of poverty with the NBA representing their ticket to freedom. Nash’s fierce determination seems to come from an entirely different place. Of course, exactly what motivates him remains a mystery, even to his family. “How do you explain where the urge comes from?” Nash’s brother, Martin, told Sports Illustrated. “You can not”.
• Anticipation—Nash played high school baseball at St. Michaels University School in Victoria, British Columbia. “He was always two, three steps ahead of what was happening on the court,” says his high school coach. Says Nash, “I think it’s who I am. It’s an ability to be aware of what’s going on around you, and I think some people are more continuously aware than others. happening around you instead of being fragmented and segmented.
• ball handling—What makes Nash’s ballhandling skills so deadly is a combination of traits ranging from talent to an unprecedented work ethic. His vision and his relationship with peers also play a role.
• First athletic experience—“I always thought soccer was a good explanation of who he is as a basketball player,” said brother Martin, 29, a professional soccer player in Canada. “Football is not a sport where you can be an individual. The role he played in football, playmaker, basically point guard, is like the role he played in all sports, from rugby to lacrosse and hockey.
• Vision—Nash has great vision on the floor. Nash sees the court very well and his incredible decision making helps him determine if he should drive or pass.
• top physical condition—Nash is in the best shape of his career. He credits a program designed by Vancouver physical therapist Rick Celebrini that he’s training tied to practical basketball moves. For more than a month last summer, the two met five or six times a week for five hours a day. “I can honestly say that in the 13 years I’ve been doing this, and that includes every Olympian I’ve ever coached, I’ve never met a person more committed to their sport than him,” says Celebrini.
• Leadership—“I don’t mind at all taking responsibility for a loss, but I don’t mind not giving myself or my team a chance to win,” Nash said. “Sometimes you have to take chances. I feel much better at night if people are pointing fingers at me for not doing the work than if they are pointing fingers at me for not doing the work than if I am pointing fingers at myself because I don’t I tried to step up. That’s what eats at you.”
• playmaker—He is deceptively quick, resourceful and a great shooter, capable of penetrating, a master playmaker and an accurate passer.
• Altruistic—There are scorers, boys, and there are passers. Steve Nash isn’t just a scorer folks, he’s a scorer and a passer folks!

With great interest I will watch the rest of the NBA season and the playoffs. Competing for an NBA title will be Steve Nash’s ultimate goal. Becoming the best player in the NBA on the road for the third season in a row would be a miracle on top of everything!