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Raptors' Nick Nurse preparing for musical performance in Toronto

By now, the image of Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse lugging his guitar around on his back while in between games is commonplace. He’s already done more than enough to endear himself to the local audience, from capturing the NBA title to coaching Team Canada in the FIBA tournament in the summer.

Now he’s putting his musical talent on display to further benefit the city he has embraced.

The 52-year-old bench boss of the defending NBA champions has already made his on-stage debut, joining Juno award winning band Arkells last summer at Budweiser Stage in Toronto.

The time has come for Nurse to break out from the band and go solo, with a date in March set as his debut. He told CityNews in Toronto that he’s almost ready to take the stage, with a musical performance as the centrepiece of the kick off party for his new foundation on March 11th.

“I’ve been working on four songs right now,” Nurse said. “We have a lot of bands coming in and I’m going to sit in with at least one of them.”

Nurse’s foundation will facilitate support of music programs for kids in the Toronto area.

As for the now meme-level photos of Nurse and his guitar on the road with the team, that’s all part of the plan. Practice makes perfect after all, and with a schedule as busy as his, finding time to get a few riffs in between designing defences to shut down the likes of Giannis Antetokounmpo is crucial.

“I’ve been traveling around with it most days and I am able to get a practice in between those moments on a good day,” Nurse said.

More details are expected to be released soon on where and with whom we can expect Nurse to hit the stage, with bootleg tapes of the performance sure to be a hit in the underground music community.

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