HENDERSON, NEV. — Between them, they have three MVP trophies.
Also between them: a tennis net.
Auston Matthews and former NBAer Steve Nash — best known for the heights they’ve reached in their respective team sports — have been rallying together, going head-to-head on the court.
“I played with Steve Nash a couple times this summer,” Matthews revealed Tuesday during a recording the 32 Thoughts podcast with Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman and Kyle Bukauskas. “He’s actually my neighbour in Phoenix.”
Matthews, the 26-year-old captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs, first had a connection to the 50-year-old Canadian basketball legend through Manny Malhotra. (The Leafs-turned-Canucks assistant coach married Joann Nash, Steve’s sister.)
And once Matthews and Nash realized their shared passion for tennis exceeds the desert heat, they hit it off.
“Not too many guys in Arizona are playing tennis in the middle of the day,” Matthews said with a smile. “He hits like a one-hand backhand kinda like Federer. He’s pretty smooth. He loves it, too.
“He’s much better than me, but he’s a lot fun to play with.”
Matthews has managed to up his tennis game while still hitting the ice earlier than he normally does in the off-season. And while the 69-goal sniper hints at a few “tweaks” to his training regimen, he declined to dive into the adjustments he plans to make to his repertoire for 2024-25.
“I like to keep these things private,” he said.
Very public was Matthews’ August coronation as the Maple Leafs’ new captain, for which his family flew across the continent to attend in Toronto.
While Matthews doesn’t feel the need to reinvent himself just because the letter on his chest has flipped from an A to a C, he will be challenging himself to use his voice more often now that he’s officially the leader of the room.
“As far as my leadership goes, I’m not maybe the most vocal guy in the locker room. But the past couple years I’ve felt more comfortable to speak up,” Matthews said.
“I tend to just lead by example, trying to set the standard for our team whether it’s in practice or in games. But I think over time, it’s important to realize the impact that you have in the locker room.”
Matthews and the Maple Leafs kick off training camp in Toronto next week, largely with the same core of talent that has made the post-season in every one of Matthews’ eight years but has only won one playoff series.
“I’m excited about our group. I really like our group a lot,” said Matthews, who believes the team needs to continue pushing forward to eventually crack through.
“I’m extremely confident in it, despite maybe the lack of post-season success over the years.”
