Nicholas David Nurse (born July 24, 1967) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

coach, author and former college basketball player. He is the head coach of the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. They play their home games a ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

(NBA) and the Canadian men's national team.

Early years

Born in

Carroll, Iowa Carroll is a city in, and the county seat of, Carroll County, Iowa, United States, along the Middle Raccoon River. The population was 10,321 in the 2020 census. History Carroll was laid out in 1867. It took its name from Carroll County, which ...

, Nurse played at the

University of Northern Iowa The University of Northern Iowa (UNI) is a public university in Cedar Falls, Iowa. UNI offers more than 90 majors across the colleges of Business Administration, Education, Humanities, Arts, and Sciences, Social and Behavioral Sciences and grad ...

from 1985 to 1989, appearing in 111 games. He is the school's all-time 3-point percentage leader at .468 (170 of 363). During their successful 1989–90 season, Nurse was the sole student assistant coach for Northern Iowa in his final year with the team. Nurse graduated from Northern Iowa in May 1990 with a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

in accounting.

Playing career

Nurse became a player-coach for the Derby Rams in the

British Basketball League The British Basketball League (BBL) is a men's professional basketball league in Great Britain and represents the highest level of play in the countries. The league is contested by 10 teams from England and Scotland. There are no clubs howeve ...

during the 1990–91 season; following the 1990–91 season, Nurse never played professionally again, opting to pursue a full-time coaching career.

Coaching career

Nurse got his first full-time head coaching job at

Grand View University Grand View University is a private liberal arts university in Des Moines, Iowa. Founded in 1896 and affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the university enrolls approximately 2,000 students and is accredited by the Highe ...

when he was only 23 years old; at the time, he was the youngest college basketball head coach in the country. He coached at Grand View for two seasons before taking on an assistant coaching role at the

University of South Dakota The University of South Dakota (USD) is a public research university in Vermillion, South Dakota. Established by the Dakota Territory legislature in 1862, 27 years before the establishment of the state of South Dakota, USD is the flagship univ ...

for two seasons. Nurse later spent 11 seasons coaching in Europe, mostly in the

(BBL). During that time, he won two BBL championships as a head coach, one with the

Birmingham Bullets The Birmingham Bullets were a British professional basketball team from Birmingham, England who competed in the British Basketball League (BBL). The club was founded in 1974 as Coventry Granwood before moving to Birmingham in 1980 as part of the ...

in 1996 and one with the

Manchester Giants The Manchester Giants are a British professional basketball team based in Manchester, England. The franchise was established in 2011, and admitted to the top-tier British Basketball League in 2012. The team's formation was led by a consortium ...

in 2000, while also helping

London Towers London Towers were a professional basketball team based in London, England. They enjoyed considerable success in the 1990s and early 2000s, collecting 3 titles in the British Basketball League (BBL) as well as regularly competing in European c ...

in the Euroleague. Nurse also won the BBL Coach of the Year Award in the 1999–2000 and 2003–04 seasons. He also coached for the

Telindus Oostende Basketball Club Oostende, for sponsorship reasons Filou Oostende, is a Belgian professional basketball team. The club is based in Ostend and was founded in 1970. The club competes domestically in the BNXT League and internationally in the Baske ...

of the

Ethias League The Pro Basketball League (PBL), was the highest tier level professional basketball league in Belgium for clubs. In 2021, the league was succeeded by the Belgian-Dutch BNXT League. Through 2014, for sponsorship reasons, the league was previously ...

in 1998, as well as became an assistant coach for the

Oklahoma Storm The Oklahoma Storm was a United States Basketball League (USBL) team in Enid, Oklahoma. Founded by sports agent and attorney James Sears Bryant, the Storm successfully captured the USBL championship under head coach Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in 2002, de ...

of the

United States Basketball League The United States Basketball League (USBL) was a professional men's spring basketball league. The league was formed in 1985 and ceased operations in 2008. The USBL started in 1985 as one of the first basketball leagues to play a late-spring to ...

in both 2001 and 2005.

D-League

In 2007, Nurse accepted the head coaching job for the

Iowa Energy Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...

, who were preparing for their first season in the NBA D-League (now called the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

). The Energy won division titles under Nurse in the 2008–09 and 2009–10 seasons.

Iowa State University

After three seasons with the Energy, Nurse agreed to join the coaching staff of the

Iowa State Cyclones The Iowa State Cyclones are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Iowa State University, located in Ames. The university is a member of the Big 12 Conference and competes in NCAA Division I, fielding 16 varsity teams (6 men's an ...

as an associate head coach in April 2010. Four days after Nurse's hiring was announced on April 22,

Greg McDermott Greg McDermott (born November 25, 1964) is an American basketball coach who has been the head coach of the Creighton Bluejays men's basketball team since 2010. Previously, McDermott served as the head coach at Wayne State College, North Dakota ...

left to become the head coach at Creighton. Nurse was not offered a spot on the new staff, but received $175,000 in a settlement for his four days as an assistant.

Return to the D-League

Nurse immediately returned to his former position as head coach with the Energy. In the 2010–11 NBA D-League season, Nurse received the

Dennis Johnson Coach of the Year Award The NBA G League Coach of the Year is an annual NBA G League award given since the 2006–07 season to the best head coach of the regular season. The league's head coaches determine the award by voting and it is usually presented to the honoree du ...

after helping Iowa achieve the best record in the league (37–13). Nurse and the Energy then went on to win the 2011 D-League championship. Before the 2011–12 season, Nurse left the Energy for the D-League's

Rio Grande Valley Vipers The Rio Grande Valley Vipers are an American professional basketball team of the NBA G League based in Edinburg, Texas, and are affiliated with the Houston Rockets. The Vipers play their home games at the Bert Ogden Arena. The Vipers have won fo ...

. In the 2012–13 season, the Vipers finished with a record of 35–15 and won the D-League finals in a two-game sweep of the

Santa Cruz Warriors The Santa Cruz Warriors are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Santa Cruz, California, and are affiliated with the Golden State Warriors. The Warriors play their home games at Kaiser Permanente Arena. Prior t ...

. During his six seasons coaching in the D-League, Nurse had 23 players on his rosters called up to the

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

NBA

In July 2013, Nurse departed the Vipers for an assistant job on the coaching staff of the

under

Dwane Casey Dwane Lyndon Casey (born April 17, 1957) is an American basketball coach who is the head coach for the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is a former NCAA basketball player and coach, having played and coached there ...

. He was in charge of the offense during his time under Casey, and in the 2017–18 season he was credited for changes to the Raptors offensive game plan which included increases in passing and 3-point attempts. The improved offense helped the Raptors win a franchise-record 59 games, but the team was swept in the second round of the 2018 NBA playoffs by the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

, and Casey was fired shortly thereafter. On June 14, 2018, the Raptors promoted Nurse to the position of head coach to succeed Casey. In his first season, he guided the Raptors to a 58–24 record, led by offseason acquisition (and eventual Finals MVP)

Kawhi Leonard Kawhi Anthony Leonard ( ; born June 29, 1991) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A two-time NBA champion, he is a five-time All-Star with three All-NBA ...

and emerging star

Pascal Siakam Pascal Siakam (born 2 April 1994) is a Cameroonian professional basketball player for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Siakam played college basketball for the New Mexico State Aggies and was named the Western At ...

, who would go on to win the NBA's Most Improved Player award. On May 25, 2019, Nurse coached the Raptors to the 2019 NBA Finals, the first for the franchise, after taking the Eastern Conference Championship by defeating the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...

in six games. On June 13, Nurse became the first head coach to win both the NBA and NBA G League (formerly D-League) titles, when the Raptors defeated the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...

in Game 6 of the NBA Finals, winning the Raptors their first championship in franchise history. In Nurse's second season, the Raptors finished with a 53–19 record, despite losing Leonard to free agency, in a season shortened by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. He was widely praised for his creativity and innovation in ensuring that the Raptors were able to maintain a high level of play despite losing Leonard. That season, Nurse qualified to be a head coach in the 2020 NBA All-Star Game as the Eastern Conference representative. On August 22, 2020, Nurse was named

NBA Coach of the Year The National Basketball Association's Coach of the Year is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given since the 1962–63 NBA season. The winner receives the Red Auerbach Trophy, which is named in honor of the head coach who led ...

. However, the Raptors were unable to repeat their playoff success of the previous season, and were eliminated in the Conference Semifinals, losing in 7 games at the hands of the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...

. On September 15, 2020, the Raptors announced that Nurse had signed a multi-year contract extension. After an unsuccessful 2020-21 season in which the Raptors played in Tampa Bay due to COVID-19, Nurse guided the team to 48 wins and a return to the playoffs in 2022.

National team career

Nurse was an assistant coach under Chris Finch, for the Great Britain national team from 2009 to 2012, including the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

in London. On June 24, 2019, Nurse was named the head coach of the Canadian men's national team for the 2019 FIBA World Cup and beyond.

Head coaching record

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Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

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NBA Championship The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The team that wins the series is awa ...

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Personal life

Nurse and his wife, Roberta, have two sons, Leo and Rocky Levi. He also has a nephew named David, who previously worked with the

Brooklyn Nets The Brooklyn Nets are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. The t ...

before becoming a personal trainer for professional players. In December 2018, Nurse's mother Marcella died. Nurse is a lifelong

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

fan and was a guest conductor of the seventh-inning stretch at

Wrigley Field Wrigley Field is a Major League Baseball (MLB) stadium on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. It is the home of the Chicago Cubs, one of the city's two MLB franchises. It first opened in 1914 as Weeghman Park for Charles Weeghman's Chicago Wh ...

in 2019, singing "

Take Me Out to the Ball Game "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" is a 1908 Tin Pan Alley song by Jack Norworth and Albert Von Tilzer which has become the unofficial anthem of North American baseball, although neither of its authors had attended a game prior to writing the song ...

." On June 20, 2019, Nurse joined

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

-based rock band

Arkells Arkells is a Canadian rock band, formed in Hamilton, Ontario. In 2006, they signed with Dine Alone Records, and have since signed with Universal Records Canada and Last Gang Records. They are managed by Last Gang Management. They have released s ...

at their sold-out Toronto concert to perform a cover of

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop musi ...

's hit song "Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I'm Yours)" on guitar. In May 2022, after completing his dissertation and comprehensive exam, Nurse graduated from

Concordia University Chicago Concordia University Chicago is a private university in River Forest, Illinois. Formerly a college exclusively for parochial teacher education, Concordia-Chicago now offers more than 100 undergraduate and postgraduate degrees and enrolls more t ...

with a Ph.D. in Sports Leadership. Nurse is a big fan of the late

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

, and was the master of ceremonies at a performance by the

New Power Generation The New Power Generation, also known as The NPG, was the backing band of musician Prince from 1990 to 2013. They were replaced by 3rdeyegirl as his backing band in 2013. In 2015, the New Power Generation reunited as Prince's backing band for ...

in Toronto on July 26, 2022.

Bibliography

''Rapture: Fifteen Teams, Four Countries, One NBA Championship, and How to Find a Way to Win — Damn Near Anywhere'' Little, Brown and Company (2020) ''ISBN 978-0316540179''

Filmography

Television

References

External links

Nick Nurse profile at BBL

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nurse, Nick 1967 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Belgium American expatriate basketball people in Canada American expatriate basketball people in the United Kingdom American men's basketball coaches American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Iowa Basketball players from Iowa Iowa Energy coaches National Basketball Association championship-winning head coaches Northern Iowa Panthers men's basketball coaches Northern Iowa Panthers men's basketball players People from Carroll, Iowa Rio Grande Valley Vipers coaches South Dakota Coyotes men's basketball coaches Toronto Raptors assistant coaches Toronto Raptors head coaches United States Basketball League coaches