He is the ninth player to win consecutive Most Valuable Player trophies1; he and Magic Johnson are the only point guards2 to win the award more than once.
Canadian Steve Nash, 32, was given the MVP award for the second year on May 8, 2006.
“I have to pinch3 myself,” Nash said. “I couldn't believe it last year, and to do it again is even more difficult to understand.”
“Steve is not just a great player,” said Jerry Colangelo, chairman of the Suns. “He's one of the few players who I believe make everyone around him better.”
From Africa to the NBA
Nash was born in Johannesburg, South Africa on Feb. 7, 1974. Shortly the family moved to Canada.
As a child, Nash was excellent at soccer and hockey. He came from a family of athletes. His father John and brother Martin both played professional soccer in England.
However, Nash turned his attention to basketball in Grade Eight. He got interested and would spend hours studying taped NBA games in order to learn players' moves.
When his college coach Dick Davey said he could work on his defence, Nash worked tirelessly to turn himself into a good defender. When someone told him he didn't have great ball handling skills, he took to bouncing a tennis ball everywhere he went.
His diligence was so great that Dick said，“I've never seen a player spend more time trying to get better. We would practise for two hours, and he would come back to the gym at 11 o'clock that night and practise until one o'clock in the morning. He made more demands on himself than a coach would, and he made the other players work harder.”
In the 1996 NBA draft, Nash went 15th to the Phoenix Suns. In 1998, he joined the Dallas Mavericks.
Nash became a star in six seasons with the Dallas Mavericks(1998-99 through 2003-04). Nash enjoyed his time in Dallas, but Mavs owner Mark Cuban decided not to match the six-year, $60-million free-agent contract that the Suns offered Nash in July 2004. Nash signed with Phoenix, and quickly found that his new team was loaded with4 out-of-this-world5 athletes such as forward Shawn Marion and center Amare Stoudemire.
“The situation was perfect,” says Nash, who was a two-time All Star with the Mavs. “I had a young team that needed me and believed in me, and I had some unbelievable teammates.”
Nash is one of the most creative playmakers in the NBA. He'll deliver a pass every way possible—underhanded, backhanded, or by leaping to gain a surprise advantage over the defense.
Team-first Attitude
Nash elevates6 the play of his teammates in a number of ways. By always attacking on the fast break, he gets the ball to Sun players before defenses can set up. He knows his teammates' playing styles so well that he understands exactly when and where to pass the ball to them for an open shot.
Nash's 15.5 points per game in the 2004-05 regular season were the fewest by a league MVP in 36 seasons. “There's not a selfish bone in his body,” says Phoenix big man Brian Grant.
Yes, Nash can score: He has a sweet 3-point shot and midrange jumper (just check out his 23.9 points per game in last season's playoffs). But passing is what Nash loves best.
“I have the skills to come down and get a good shot every time I want to, but I still feel uncomfortable about it,” he says. “I hate coming down and taking a shot because that means my teammates made a trip without doing anything. I want them to feel a part of it.”
Keeping Life Fun
Nash has always played sports for fun. As a kid, he played soccer and basketball. But as the games in his NBA career have grown more important, Nash is stubborn about keeping basketball fun so he can maintain his enthusiasm.
Nash doesn't seek publicity. But he doesn't mind using his celebrity status to discuss issues that he feels strongly about. During the 2003 All-Star Weekend, he wore a T-shirt that read, “No War, Shoot For Peace,” and spoke out against the approaching war in Iraq. He's also a big reader, enjoying everything from J.D. Salinger's The Catcher In The Rye to the political writings of Karl Marx.
“The biggest thing is finding fun and inspiration7 every day,” says Nash. “Some days you don't feel like working, but you find a way to make it fun and inspiring—get your spirits up, and then go out and do your work.”
Valuable Nash
The 2005-06 season presents the biggest challenge of Nash's career. Stoudemire is absent with a knee injury. Nash helped the Suns win a second straight Pacific Division crown. He made career highs in scoring (18.8 points per game), rebounding (4.2) and field goal8 percentage (.512) during the 2005-06 NBA regular season. He also topped the league in free throw percentage (.921), assists (10.5 per game) and finished sixth in three-point percentage at .439.
“A lot is made about me making my teammates better, and I really believe that my teammates make me a lot better, too,” said Nash.“I'm fortunate enough to play with great players. I owe a lot to them, a lot to the organization, and a lot to the city.”
Make no mistake9: Winning a title is tops on Nash's agenda10. “What else can you really accomplish, except for having fun?”he asks, before answering his own question. “Winning a championship is the only thing left, because I'm pretty good at having fun every day.”
Quotes
“I am not too accusatorial11 or defensive12 by nature. I have always been kind of philosophical13 about it, remembering that it is just a game. People take these things too seriously.”
“A lot of people can relate to me because I'm normal size and came from humble14 beginnings. It's probably easier to relate to than some guy 6 foot 7 who can jump out of the gym.” (Nash is 6'3" (1.91 m) tall.)
他是NBA历史上第9位连续两次获得最有价值球员奖杯的球员，不止一次获得这一殊荣的NBA控球后卫只有他和魔术师约翰逊。
2006年5月8日，32岁的加拿大人史蒂夫·纳什第二次获得最有价值球员奖。
“我得使劲掐我自己，”纳什说，“去年我就不相信这是真的，再次得奖更让人难以接受。”
“史蒂夫不仅仅是位伟大的球员，”太阳队经理杰瑞·科兰杰洛说，“他是为数不多的几个能让周围的每一个人都表现得更好的球员之一。”
从非洲到NBA
纳什1974年2月7日出生在南非约翰内斯堡，不久举家迁往加拿大。
孩童时期，纳什足球和曲棍球都玩得非常棒。他出身体育世家，父亲约翰、哥哥马丁都在英格兰踢职业足球。
然而，8年级时，纳什的注意力转向了篮球，他对篮球的兴趣很浓，常常一连几小时研究NBA比赛录像，揣摩NBA球员的运球动作。
当纳什的大学教练迪克·大卫说他可以打后卫的时候，纳什开始不知疲倦地练习，使自己成为一名优秀的防守队员；当有人说他没有过人控球技术的时候，他开始练习拍网球，走到哪儿都球不离手。
他非常勤奋。迪克说：“我还从没见过哪位球员比他花更多的时间来提高球技。我们要是训练两小时，他就会当晚11点回到体育馆，一直练到凌晨1点。他对自己的要求比教练对他的要求还要高，他的榜样作用也促使其他球员更刻苦地训练。”
1996年NBA选秀大会上，他以第15名的身份被菲尼克斯太阳队选中。1998年他加入达拉斯小牛队。
在达拉斯小牛队的6个赛季里（98-99至03-04赛季），纳什成了大明星。纳什在达拉斯是快乐的，但2004年7月太阳队向纳什提供了一份为期6年、价值6千万美元的自由球员合同，小牛队老板马克·库本决定放弃他，这样纳什和太阳队签约。很快他发现他的新队友中有许多杰出的运动员，比如前锋肖恩·马里昂、中锋阿玛雷·斯塔德迈尔。
纳什在小牛队时曾两次入选全明星队。他说：“太阳队的情况是完美的，这是一支年轻的球队，它需要我、信任我，我的队友们都棒极了！”
纳什是NBA最富有创造力的球员之一，他传球的方法变化多端：低手传球、反手传球、高高跳起在防守队员毫无防备的情况下传球。
球队高于一切
纳什有许多办法使队友们振奋精神、全力发挥。他总是发起快攻，在对手还来不及组织起防守的时候就将球传给队友。他对每一个队友的风格了如指掌，准确地知道什么时候什么地点传球，使队友可以轻松投篮而无人防守。
2004-05赛季常规赛期间，纳什平均每场得15.5分，这是过去36个赛季里NBA联赛最有价值球员得到的最低分。太阳队的大个子布莱恩·格兰特说：“他一点也不自私。”
是的，纳什也能得分，他的三分球和中距离投篮都很漂亮（想想看，上赛季季后赛他平均每场得23.9分）。但是，传球是他的至爱。
“每次只要我想要，我是有能力带球上篮得分的，但那样我依然会感到不爽，”他说，“我讨厌带球上篮得分，因为这意味着我的队友来回奔跑而无所作为，我要让他们感到自己是整个比赛的一部分。”
享受生活
纳什一直以打球为乐，小时候他既打篮球也踢足球。当他的NBA运动生涯变得愈发重要的时候，纳什坚持以快乐的心态去打篮球，这样能保持持久的热情。
纳什不追求名气，但他并不在意利用自己的名人地位来讨论自己感受深刻的问题。2003年全明星周末赛期间，他穿了一件T恤，上面写着：“No War, Shoot for Peace”, 借此抗议即将爆发的伊拉克战争。他还非常喜欢阅读，他读的书从塞林格的《麦田里的守望者》到马克思的政治著作，样样都有。
“最重要的是每天都找到快乐和灵感，”纳什说，“有时候你感觉不想工作，但你要想办法让它充满快乐和灵感——振作起来，然后出去做你的工作。”
价值不菲的纳什
2005-06赛季向纳什的篮球生涯提出了最大的挑战，斯塔德迈尔由于膝伤而不能上场，纳什帮助太阳队连续两次获得太平洋赛区冠军。2005-06年常规赛期间，纳什的得分（平均每场18.8分）、篮板（平均每场4.2个）和投篮命中率（51.2%）都创新高。此外，他罚球命中率为92.1%，平均每场10.5次助攻，在全联盟中名列前茅，三分球命中率为43.9%，在全联盟中名列第六。
“人们谈论很多，说我调动了整个球队的积极性，但我真的相信我的队友们同样让我进步，”纳什说，“我有幸和这些伟大的球员一起打球，我非常感谢他们，感谢这个组织，感谢这座城市。”
毫无疑问，夺冠是他的首要任务。“除了快乐以外，你还能真正获得其它什么东西？”他问。他接着回答自己的问题：“惟一剩下的就是获得冠军，因为我每天都在享受篮球、享受生活。”
纳什语录
“我天生不是那种愤愤不平、处处设防的人，我对它（篮球）抱着一种达观的态度，我知道它这不过是一场比赛而已。人们把这些东西看得太重。”
“很多人能够认同我，因为我身材普通、出身卑微。比起一个身高6英尺7英寸、仿佛能够一下子跳出体育馆的大个子来，人们更容易在我身上找到自己的影子。”(纳什身高6英尺3英寸，即1.91米。)
1. trophy n. 奖杯，奖品
2. point guard 控球后卫
3. pinch v. 掐
4. be loaded with... 充满…
5. out of this world 特别的；超级的
6. elevate v. 提高，提升
7. inspiration n. 灵感
8. field goal 投篮得两分或三分
9. make no mistake 毫无疑问
10. agenda n. 议事日程
11. accusatorial adj. 责备的，谴责的
12. defensive adj. 防御性的
13. philosophical adj. 哲学的，达观的
14. humble adj. 卑微的
15. spondylolisthesis n. 脊椎前移
16. podium n. 颁奖台
17. grip n. 紧握
18. block n. 球场看台一个区的座位