Track the timeline of Nick Nurse’s duties since he was first named head coach of the Toronto Raptors in June of 2018 and it’s a surprise he’s been able to pick up new skills along the way.



His hiring was followed swiftly by the acquisition of Kawhi Leonard and the creation of an uncommon degree of pressure for a first-year NBA head coach. The season, of course, went long, all the way to the NBA Finals and the team’s first championship. A mid-June parade rolled into a late-June draft, early-July free agency — complete with the official confirmation that Nurse would have plenty to adjust in his second year — and Las Vegas Summer League. Around those dates, Nurse joined Arkells on stage to show off the newfound guitar skill, sang “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” at Wrigley Field and committed to becoming the head coach of Canada Basketball’s senior men’s team.



The latter meant that Nurse’s once-brief...