Steve Nash's Charity Classic cancelled

The Grizzlies were the first to go.
Now, it's the Steve Nash Foundation Charity Classic.
What is it with Vancouver and basketball?
Nash has called a timeout on his foundation's annual basketball game, citing - what else? - a lack of spectator interest.
However, unlike the NBA, Nash isn't writing off the city forever.
"We're going to take the summer off. We didn't have quite the turnout last summer as we needed," Nash said. "Hopefully, we'll be back next year and there'll be a renewed enthusiasm."
The Steve Nash Foundation Charity Classic has been held in Vancouver the past two summers, after the inaugural showcase was launched in Toronto in 2005. The exhibition game, which attracted a crowd that packed GM Place in 2006, raised almost $400,000 for his charitable foundation, which helps children in B.C. and around the world.
The game wasn't as well received last summer, with fewer than 12,000 fans in attendance.
"It was a great turnout the first year, maybe it was the novelty of it, but I think it's a tough sell to do it every year," said the Phoenix Suns guard and two-time league MVP.
"I only want to do it if it's going to be great. If it's going to be mediocre, I don't want to do it. I want to do things that are great and that [affect] as many people as possible. So we're going to regroup, reanalyze it, and make it better for next time."
The lack of star power didn't help attendance. Besides Nash, many of the players making the trip north were rookies, journeymen or reserves on their NBA teams.
That's not so much a reflection on Nash, but the date given to him by the league. Late July conflicted directly with training camps for the World Basketball Championships, so many of the league's top players were unavailable due to commitments to their respective countries.
The best players joining Nash last year were his Phoenix teammates Raja Bell and Leandro Barbosa, Sam Cassell of the Los Angeles Clippers, former dunk champion Fred Jones of the New York Knicks and one-time Vancouver Grizzly Felipe Lopez.
While disappointed he won't be bringing professional basketball to B.C. this summer, Nash said his foundation is continuing to improve the lives of underserved children.
"It's still unbelievable to me," said Nash, proudly. "We have the grant program in B.C., we have a basketball court for youth programs in Toronto, we're doing things in Arizona, and Central and South America. We're also supporting some causes in Africa. We're doing a lot of things."
Nash, never one to boast, failed to mention the Steve Nash Youth Basketball League, which has spread nationwide since he took it over when the Grizzlies left town. The foundation's most recent help is with a project in Arizona called Educare, an early education school for at-risk children.
"It's Warren Buffet's model," said Nash. "They hire the best teachers and social scientists to come up with the model for at-risk kids who have very little chance of succeeding educationally so they have a great opportunity to thrive educationally. It's a fantastic, tangible centre and we're proud to be part of it. It's exciting."
More than a basketball game, the Steve Nash Charity Classic offered fans a chance to see Canada's favourite export up close and personal. A Good Karma Block Party preceded the game and Nash answered questions from the crowd before tipoff.