Nash repeats as NBA MVP

PHOENIX – That mop-haired Canadian did it again, running away with his second consecutive NBA Most Valuable Player award.

Steve Nash – the maestro of the fast, frenetic Phoenix Suns – beat runner-up LeBron James of Cleveland by a comfortable margin in results announced Sunday.

He is the ninth player to win consecutive MVP trophies and joins Magic Johnson as the only point guards to win the award more than once.

“I have to pinch myself,” Nash said. “I can’t believe that I’m standing here today. I couldn’t believe it last year, and to do it again is even more difficult to understand – but I’m not going to give it back.”

The Suns playmaker received 57 first-place votes and 924 points overall from a panel of 125 sports writers and broadcasters in the United States and Canada.

James had 16 first-place votes and 688 points overall. But at 21, James knows he will have many more opportunities.

“It would have been nice of course to put another trophy in my house, in my showcase,” he said from Auburn Hills, Mich., before the Cavaliers played the Detroit Pistons. “But it’s something I’m going to keep working hard for. I can’t dwell on not being named MVP.”

Nash’s close friend Dirk Nowitzki of Dallas was third with 14 first-place ballots and 544 overall points. Kobe Bryant of the Lakers had the second-most votes for first place (22), but was fourth overall with 483 points.

The 32-year-old Nash is the 11th player to win the MVP award more than once.

“Steve’s a leader,” Suns owner Robert Sarver said. “He’s the face of our team, he’s the face of the organization. He’s a role model for a lot of people, including me, who look up to him for his ability to constantly motivate the people around him with positive encouragement, even in the face of adversity and when things aren’t going well.”

Nash praised his teammates and coaching staff for “a perfect environment for me to succeed and for our team to succeed, and for me to stand here today.”

“It’s surreal,” Nash said. “I feel silly being up here because I really can’t put it into words, no matter how hard I try.”