TORONTO–New Philadelphia 76ers coach Nick Nurse spent the previous 10 years north of the border as part of the Toronto Raptors. He spent five years as an assistant and five years as a head coach before migrating to Philadelphia.
In those five years as a head coach, Nurse had a ton of success that will etch him into not only Raptors lore, but Toronto sports lore as a whole. He led the Raptors to their one and only championship in 2019 and he had a lot of success overall winning 227 games across the five years.
“He’s coached a lot of different places, but this is his staple,” acknowledged Danny Green who was on that 2019 Raptors team. “His foundation. This is where he kinda made a home and he won a championship here. The first time they ever experienced it so for him to bring a championship to the city, they’re always going to remember that. They’re always going to love anybody that’s a part of that group for that. It was that special.”
Nurse was essential in the development of Raptors stars such as Pascal Siakm and OG Anunoby and former Toronto All-Star Fred VanVleet. He made an undeniable impact in Toronto and Green knows that the Raptors will honor him the right way.
“Canadians love their sports,” said Green. “They love their players, they love their people, so I can assume that they’re really gonna show him a lot of love, and they should. 10 years is a long time. Especially, in this league for one organization. Five years an assistant. Five years as a head coach. I can’t wait to see what the video is they put together for him. I can’t wait to see the love they show for him. He definitely earned it and deserves it.”
Green knows how great of a city Toronto can be and how much Nurse is loved in the city. He played for the Raptors when they won the title and due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they had to keep pushing back the ring ceremony for him when he kept making his return to Toronto.
When he finally got his championship ring from 2019, he was able to do it in front of the fans inside the Scotiabank Arena.
“It worked out because the time that I missed when I had COVID, nobody could make it and the time that we pushed it back to, they opened up the arena so it was great, man,” Green said with a smile. “It was warm welcoming. It was loving. They showed a lot of love. Every time I’m here, there’s always so much love. It’s a place I can call home. I miss and love the city very much for a multitude of reasons, but Canadians, they’re amazing, man. They’re amazing.”
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