The Toronto Tempo have signed Canadian point guard Kia Nurse of Hamilton, Ontario according to Rogers Sportsnet on Tuesday. The signing should have been considered a no-brainer by the Tempo management team due to the incredible impact Nurse has had on women’s basketball in the last decade.
Nurse is actually joining her sixth WNBA franchise in her career. She previously played three seasons with the New York Liberty from 2018 to 2020, one season with the Phoenix Mercury in 2021, one season with the Seattle Storm in 2023, one season with the Los Angeles Sparks in 2024, and one season with the Chicago Sky in 2025. In the offseason, Nurse has been a basketball analyst on TSN.
This past season with the Sky, Nurse averaged 7.2 points per game, 2.3 rebounds per game, and 1.3 assists per game. She had a field goal percentage of .354, three point percentage of .335 and free throw percentage of .790.
By signing Nurse, the Tempo did not make the same colossal mistake the Vancouver Grizzlies made when they were a second year franchise in 1996. Thirty years ago, the Grizzlies had the opportunity to draft future Hall of Fame point guard and local basketball product Steve Nash of Victoria, British Columbia. Instead, they drafted Shareef-Abdur Rahim third overall. Nash was drafted 15th overall by the Phoenix Suns.
