DALLAS -- Hours after helping his home country kick off the Winter Olympics, Steve Nash was back on the basketball court Saturday.
Nash helped light the Olympic cauldron at Friday's opening ceremonies in Vancouver, British Columbia. He also carried the Olympic torch through Vancouver earlier in the week.
"The energy and the atmosphere surrounding the Olympic Games, especially on my home soil, is phenomenal," said the Phoenix Suns star, who grew up in British Columbia. "There are people from all over the world there and there are people from all over the world watching. Just to be at home, hosting the world and to be part of it in the way I was is indescribable."
It was a quick turnaround for Nash, who made the 2,200-mile trip to Dallas in time for Saturday's noon practice for the Western Conference All-Stars.
Nash will be making his seventh All-Star appearance in Sunday's game at the Dallas Cowboys stadium, near the city where he played from 1998-04. He signed a free-agent deal with the Suns in the summer of 2004.
"This is a lot more special being in Dallas than any other random city," the two-time NBA MVP said. "This is an important place for me. I have great affection for the fans, the city and the organization."