Horry welcome at Nash's charity game

Steve Nash is a charitable guy. How charitable?
The Phoenix Suns' point guard said San Antonio Spurs villain Robert Horry would be welcome at his celebrity all-star game in Vancouver in the summer.
"He is always invited," Nash said. "I have to admit, even though he put me down on the blueline there, he's a great guy. He was a teammate and I really like Robert. I've been a few seconds away from snapping a few times myself. It really wasn't that bad, what he did."
Horry sent Nash flying into the scorer's table with a bodycheck in the dying moments of the Suns' win in the fourth game of their hotly contested National Basketball Association Western Conference semi-final playoff series.
Horry was suspended for two games, but the Suns' Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw were also suspended, one game each, for leaving the bench, even though neither took part in the ensuing scrum. The suddenly undermanned Suns lost the fifth game at home and had their dreams of an NBA title dashed when they lost the sixth game in San Antonio.
The result is a longer off-season than Nash, native of Victoria, would like or was expecting, and another year to wait before having a chance to win his first NBA title, this year's opportunity having been taken away unfairly, Nash would argue.
"I think we have a great team," Nash said Tuesday on a telephone conference call to promote the third annual Steve Nash Charity Classic in Vancouver on July 21. "I think it's hard to judge us because of the suspensions. Part of me feels like, though we've improved, the other part of me feels like it's hard to truthfully judge this team because we were kind of stripped of a fair opportunity in many regards."
Nash, with more time on his hands now, was asked whether he might play for the Canadian national team at the Olympic qualifying tournament in Las Vegas from Aug. 22 to Sept. 2.
"I think the answer is probably no," he said. "But it's difficult because I had some of the best times of my life playing on the national team and it means a lot to me. At the same time, I owe a lot to the [Suns] franchise and I'm not getting any younger. For me to play again in the summer would be difficult for me to keep up all season with the responsibility I have to this team [the Suns]. I would say the easy answer is no, but it's very difficult for me because it's tempting and I'd love to continue being part of the national team program."
It's the second consecutive year Nash has had his celebrity game in his home province, after holding the inaugural showcase in Toronto. Proceeds go to his charitable foundation, whose projects help children in B.C. and elsewhere.
Nash was optimistic he would get a good turnout from his friends throughout the NBA, though he said league rules prevent him from naming participants.
Nash also said he hoped the event, which includes a celebrity poker game on the Friday night and a Good Karma Block Party in the afternoon, would have a neutral to positive impact on the environment. One sponsor, Chrysler, is providing alternative-fuel cars; communications are by recycled paper and organic-based ink, and a tree-planting program will counter the carbon emissions the weekend might generate.
"For me it is a source of pride to get that many people together," Nash said. "It's not a PR thing. It's about creating a difference in the community. You can do that by raising money and by raising awareness. For our foundation to be able to bring together that many people and exchange ideas and their passion for helping in their community is amazing."