Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse is now part of an elite group of coaches who have won the NBA title in their first year in the league. What makes the 51-year-old's tale even more amazing is the type of humble beginnings Nurse had as he embarked on his career as a basketball coach:
In 2005, a man happily accepted the job to be an assistant coach for a summer basketball team in Oklahoma. It paid $43 a day. To earn it, he would have to coach, wash the uniforms and drive the team to games. Tonight, Nick Nurse is the coach of the NBA Champions. pic.twitter.com/K685PofLh9
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) June 14, 2019
In the span of 14 years, Nurse's career has had a meteoric rise, and at the moment, he has reached the pinnacle of his profession. From a do-it-all coach/cleaner/driver, he is now an NBA champion, and one we can all say truly deserves all he has accomplished in his very young NBA career.
It wasn't too long ago that Nurse was somewhat painted in a bad light by some people in the media. Having served as an assistant to former head coach Dwane Casey for five seasons, there were some who argued that Nurse was one of the reasons why the Raptors' front office finally decided to part ways with Casey. Nurse was reportedly already identified as Casey's successor by president Masai Ujiri long before Casey was officially fired.
All this nonsense has now been quashed, with Nurse proving to everyone that the reason he was appointed as the team's head coach was simply because he could help the Raptors win it all. Nurse has been through adversity all his life, and this latest accomplishment perhaps serves as the ultimate vindication for a man who appears destined for a remarkable coaching career in the big leagues.
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