MIES (Switzerland) - Canada has arrived in the NBA Finals.
Not the country's lone team in the league, the Toronto Raptors. But Canada.
And if FIBA Hall of Famer and the country's idol Steve Nash never made it to the NBA Finals during his incredible career, his influence is all over the 2025 NBA Finals.
"Steve, obviously, is the pioneer for Canadian basketball," said NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at the press conference before the start of the Finals. "He started the whole thing, I guess you could say."
"From the way he plays, to the way he carries himself, to his approach to the game. I learned so much from Steve being a 17-year-old kid."
SGA is not the only one feeling this way. Four Canadians, all with strong connections to the national team, will play when Oklahoma City square off against Indiana.
SGA and his Oklahoma City and Canada teammate Lu Dort, will face off against the Pacers and their two Canucks, Andrew Nembhard and Bennedict Mathurin.
Nembhard played at the 2019 World Cup and the Paris Olympics, and Mathurin was a star at the 2021 FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup.
Every time we sacrifice our summer to play with the national team, it prepares us for the whole season
Canada finished third at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Manila and then fifth at the Paris Olympics, so this is a continuation of sorts for the national team.
Dort even referred to the national team in his NBA Finals press conference.
"Every time we sacrifice our summer to play with the national team, it prepares us for the whole season," he said.
Having four Canadians in the Finals?
"Big," Dort said. "It's just showing that Canada basketball keeps growing. I feel like there's been a Canadian NBA player in the Finals for the last, I don't know how many years. It just shows there is a lot of there."
Dort is carrying national pride into the showdown.
"Obviously we represent our teams here, but at the end of the day, we represent our countries as well," he said. "It's going to be a lot of fun."
Dort could guard Mathurin, who appreciates the significance of this Finals for his homeland.
"I think it means a lot for Canada," he said. "All of the players coming from Canada. I think there are more and more every single year. It's a great thing for Canada basketball."
For Gilgeous-Alexander, the NBA Finals is another amazing moment in what has been a special few years.
I played against Andrew (Nembhard) when I was nine years old
"It'll be fun," SGA said. "I played against Andrew (Nembhard) when I was nine years old. It's been an amazing journey.
"To see him have success, my own success, Lu's success, Ben's success, it's special. It's hard to wrap your head around, just kids that played in the same games that we played, for us to make it to this stage is a testament to our hard work, our character, the people around us that help us get here. It's been a blessing."
SGA is the second Canadian to be honored as the NBA MVP after Steve Nash, who claimed the award twice as a player with the Phoenix Suns.
Now Gilgeous-Alexander is not only in the Finals but has a chance to win them. He made sure to pay tribute to Nash.
"The things he's done with Canada basketball and just push the culture forward, it's been amazing."
Rowan Barrett, Nash's former teammate and now general manager of the men's national team, says this is an exciting time for the sport in his country.
"It’s a triumph for our Canadian basketball system," he said to Sportico of having four Canadians in the NBA Finals.
"These are homegrown athletes who played in the elementary schools, clubs and provincial teams… As they stand on [the NBA Finals] stage, all these parts of our basketball infrastructure have impacted their growth and development."
Most of the players in the Finals are from the USA while Canada have the second biggest representation with four.
Oklahoma City's 27-year-old center, Isaiah Hartenstein, meanwhile, is flying the flag for Germany.
"It means a lot," he said. "I think just growing up over there, you watched (Dirk) Nowitzki make it this far. You watched him win it (with Dallas). So now, just being able to be in this situation where you can play not just for Oklahoma City, not just for the name on the back of your jersey, but also for your country back home, it means a lot."
FIBA