The Phoenix Suns are welcoming one of their greatest players in franchise history back into the fold.
Suns owner Mat Ishbia announced on Monday that Hall of Famer Steve Nash, who won back-to-back NBA MVP awards during his time in Phoenix, has joined the team as a senior advisor.
Nash was selected 15th overall by the Suns in the 1996 NBA draft and spent the first two years of his career in Phoenix before being traded to the Dallas Mavericks. After establishing himself as an All-Star point guard in Dallas, Nash returned to his original franchise as a free agent in 2004 and reached even greater heights.
Upon re-joining the Suns, Nash emerged as one of the best floor generals in the league as he guided the team to a first-place finish in the Western Conference at 62-20. He led the league with 11.5 assists per game on his way to earning his first career MVP award, and he followed that up with a second straight MVP season in which he averaged a career-high 18.8 points along with a league-leading 10.5 assists.
Nash is joining a Suns franchise that is entering a new era. Phoenix hired former Cleveland Cavaliers assistant Jordan Ott as its new head coach, marking the fourth different coach to lead the team in the last four years following the firings of Monty Brown, Frank Vogel and Mike Budenholzer.
In addition to hiring a new head coach, the Suns traded veteran stars Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal amid a slew of offseason moves to build around star guard Devin Booker.
Phoenix needs all the positivity it can get after its recent run of disappointments, so bringing in Nash will hopefully help the team start moving in the right direction.