Steve Nash opens the Toronto Stock Exchange, which was up in early trading on Tuesday. (Julia Pelish photo)
Just because the NBA is locked out doesn’t mean Steve Nash isn’t taking shots in a competitive environment.
The two-time MVP from Victoria, British Columbia rang the opening bell at the Toronto Stock Exchange on Tuesday morning as part of Liquid Nutrition Group, a maker of nutritional beverages. Nash is a partner in the Quebec-based chain that serves juices, smoothies and electrolyte-rich mineral water.
While he was excited about the prospects of the company, which plans to open nine franchises across Metro Toronto, he was downbeat about the odds of a quick settlement to the NBA’s work stoppage.
“I wish I had good news for you,” the Phoenix Suns’ point guard said shortly after trading commenced on the TSX. “I sense that it’s getting toward the place where it needs to get but I don’t think we’re there. Maybe next week people will start to say, ‘Okay, let’s cut the crap and get a deal in place.’ I don’t mean to be flip about it. This is a serious negotiation.”
Talks are expected to become more intense as the deadline nears for the season-opener on November 1. Both the players’ union and league owners resumed discussions with full bargaining committees at the negotiating table on Tuesday. Training camps are supposed to start on October 3, but it seems unlikely they will.
“The players are unified but having said that we want to get back to work as soon as we possibly can,” said Nash, who arrived in Toronto at 3 a.m. from Winnipeg, where he received a humanitarian award from a hospital charity. “At some point we have to come together, come to a middle ground. Right now, the owners are pretty adamant they don’t want to come to the middle ground. They want us to come down. That’s the main issue.”
Asked if the players might consider starting their own league, Nash said anything would be on the table if the lockout prolonged.
Adrian Brijbassi 