Gentry lets it be known that Nash is playing at no more than 70 percent right now. The Suns head coach also admits he is fairly surprised Nash is playing at all.

Alvin Gentry joined KTAR in Phoenix with Burns & Gambo to discuss Steve Nash becoming the Phoenix Suns all-time assists leader, Grant Hill’s knee injury, the emergence of Josh Childress in the Suns lineup, and Steve Nash playing through injuries.

Steve Nash is now the Suns all-time assists leader. Nice night for Steve Nash huh coach?

“Yeah he played extremely well. To be honest with you guys he is probably 70%. He had more ice on him after the game then you would find on a cooler I think. That’s just the kind of guy he is and he went out and he did a great job. I just thought he was really aggressive offensively. He just played extremely well.”

Let’s talk about Grant Hill and the knee. What are the expectations with him going forward?

“Well he feels a lot better. I don’t know at what stage of the game that he actually hurt it, but it just wasn’t worth taking a risk. We just sat him out. It was sore and Josh [Childress] had been playing really good for us anyway and really aggressive, so it was one of those deals where we felt it was best to sit him out and kind of take a look at it. He’ll rest it today and we’ll go to shoot around tomorrow and kind of take a look at it and see where we are with it.”

What have you seen out of Josh Childress that you like?

“He is the consummate professional. When he was sitting over there not playing, he was working every day at practice and doing that and we had talked several times. When I put him in there he did great and I just told him that I would continue to use him when he played with that kind of aggressiveness and defensively I thought he’s done a good job for us. It gives me a guy to relieve Grant [Hill] of guarding a Dirk Nowitzk of the world or something like that. I think he’s playing really good.”

You mentioned how Steve Nash had more ice on him than a cooler. He’s okay though right?

“Yeah he’ll play. I just…he won’t ever say anything about it. He’s playing in a lot of pain and there’s a lot of things going that would not normally – the normal guy I don’t think would be playing.”

Listen to Alvin Gentry on 620 KTAR in Phoenix here

Humanities Lecture Series, "Race, Politics and Art"
Presented by Vernon Burt

Vernon Burt dreamed of having an NBA career. But like his oil paintings, his life has taken on many layers. Burt's presentation of “Race, Politics and Art” takes place on 6:30 p.m., Feb. 16, at the Nursing Innovation Building Two, 550 N. Third St., Phoenix, Innovation Auditorium, room 110.

The lecture commences this year's spring 2012 Humanities Lecture Series, a part of the ASU Project Humanities and coincides with Black History Month. It is free and open to the public.

“Art has always been a part of humanity and race simply gives it a different viewpoint,” Burt said. “My life experiences have always been very eclectic and it reflects in my work.”

Burt, who grew up in Shaker Heights, Ohio, was a star guard at Benedictine High School and pinned all of his hopes on becoming a professional basketball player. While at the late "Pistol" Pete Maravich basketball camp in Pennsylvania, Burt was singled out by the legendary college and NBA player.

"I was fortunate enough to not only meet my idol but to develop a close personal relationship with him," he said. "Pete always said I should have something to fall back on after basketball is over."

Those dreams were dashed when he discovered his abilities weren't good enough for the pro ranks, and he left California State College before the start of his sophomore year. He grew depressed over the next few years and the disappointment fueled his alcohol consumption, which became full blown when he entered the Cleveland Heights Police Department in 1979.

After 10 years on the police force, Burt was promoted to homicide detective where he excelled despite losing his battle with the bottle. Burt finally decided to get help and through a 12-step recovery program, he turned his life around. Burt quit his job, got married, and decided on a fresh start. He and his bride pulled out a map of the country, placed it on a coffee table, and pitched pennies where it might be interesting to live. The last penny landed on Phoenix, and the two found a home in Gilbert.

Burt and his wife, Francisca, found employment, but he said his life lacked a certain passion. That is, until his wife suggested he rekindle his love for painting. While on the police force, Burt had studied art for a few years at the Cleveland Institute of Art.

Then the words of his idol came back to him.

"It hit me – painting is what I should be doing," he said. "That was the one thing I should fall back on because it made me happy."

Burt specializes in oil, airbrush, and acrylic paintings and has made a name for himself in local art circles for his work on Buffalo Soldiers, the Tuskegee Airmen, and black cowboys. His work has been displayed in several Valley art galleries and sells for up to $1,000 a painting.

This lecture is part of the ASU Project Humanities.

Vernon Burt dreamed of having an NBA career. But like his oil paintings, his life has taken on many layers. Burt's presentation of “Race, Politics and Art” takes place on 6:30 p.m., Feb. 16, at the Nursing Innovation Building Two, 550 N. Third St., Phoenix, Innovation Auditorium, room 110.

The lecture commences this year's spring 2012 Humanities Lecture Series, a part of the ASU Project Humanities and coincides with Black History Month. It is free and open to the public.
“Art has always been a part of humanity and race simply gives it a different viewpoint,” Burt said. “My life experiences have always been very eclectic and it reflects in my work.”

Burt, who grew up in Shaker Heights, Ohio, was a star guard at Benedictine High School and pinned all of his hopes on becoming a professional basketball player. While at the late "Pistol" Pete Maravich basketball camp in Pennsylvania, Burt was singled out by the legendary college and NBA player.

"I was fortunate enough to not only meet my idol but to develop a close personal relationship with him," he said. "Pete always said I should have something to fall back on after basketball is over."
Those dreams were dashed when he discovered his abilities weren't good enough for the pro ranks, and he left California State College before the start of his sophomore year. He grew depressed over the next few years and the disappointment fueled his alcohol consumption, which became full blown when he entered the Cleveland Heights Police Department in 1979.

After 10 years on the police force, Burt was promoted to homicide detective where he excelled despite losing his battle with the bottle. Burt finally decided to get help and through a 12-step recovery program, he turned his life around. Burt quit his job, got married, and decided on a fresh start. He and his bride pulled out a map of the country, placed it on a coffee table, and pitched pennies where it might be interesting to live. The last penny landed on Phoenix, and the two found a home in Gilbert.

Burt and his wife Francisca found employment, but he said his life lacked a certain passion. That is, until his wife suggested he rekindle his love for painting. While on the police force, Burt had studied art for a few years at the Cleveland Institute of Art.

Then the words of his idol came back to him.
"It hit me – painting is what I should be doing," he said. "That was the one thing I should fall back on because it made me happy."

Burt specializes in oil, airbrush, and acrylic paintings and has made a name for himself in local art circles for his work on Buffalo Soldiers, the Tuskegee Airmen, and black cowboys. His work has been displayed in several valley art galleries and sells for up to $1,000 a painting.
This lecture is part of the ASU Project Humanities.

Proceeds given to Phoenix Children's Hospital and Tumbleweed program. Building meaningful connections while playing flag.
 
For more information, visit www.glorydays4on4.com.

Players in grades 7th and 8th are invited to register now for the Girls Middle School Basketball Showcase 2012!

Sunday, February 12

PHOENIX COLLEGE
1202 W. Thomas Road
PHOENIX, AZ

This is the TOP exposure event of the year!

EVERYONE PLAYS 3 GAMES

• 3 games for $275 for Teams or 3 games for $95 for individuals not on a team
• Play against good competition in Arizona & gain media coverage for your team
• Chad Groth of Area Codes Basketball will be scouting this event for potential prospects for exposure on the website
• Jeff Meadows of Hoopsreport.com will be on site to evaluate players and rank middle school players for the national website
• Selected players will be selected for the Middle School All American Camp in May 2012.

DEADLINE TO REGISTER IS FEBRUARY 4, 2012

For registration forms and more information, visit areacodesbasketball.com.