Why was WWE legend Kevin Nash forced to retire from basketball? All you need to know

Kevin Nash was basketball’s loss and wrestling’s gain. Before forging a path as one of the iconic figures in the WWE, Nash had aspirations of someday playing in the NBA.

Nash, who became a legend in the wrestling world as “Diesel,” spent three years with the University of Tennessee in the SEC. An incident in his college days, however, forced him to give up his basketball dreams.

The big man reportedly got into an altercation with former coach Don DeVoe, who allegedly blamed Nash for their loss to Kentucky. After his jersey was supposedly “grabbed” by the head coach, Nash “b***hsmacked him.”

The dust-up ultimately changed Kevin Nash’s life as he left Tennessee after that. He supposedly wanted to transfer to Bowling Green University for his last opportunity to play college basketball. Nash changed his mind, in the end, to play professional hoops in Europe.

He played for a couple of seasons there before a torn ACL made him decide to just quit basketball. Several years after working on a variety of jobs, Kevin Nash debuted in the WCW as “Steel.”

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Kevin Nash wasn’t the only WWE legend who had a basketball background

Before becoming sports entertainment legends, "The Undertaker" and "Kane" played school basketball. [photo: YouTube]

Kevin Nash was just one of several big-name WWE stars who had a basketball career in school. There have also been others who excelled in the sport during their school days.

One of those is none other than “The Undertaker,” who is easily one of the most recognizable and inimitable faces in the WWE. Before playing “The Deadman” in pro wrestling, Mark Calaway was already a pain to deal with on the hard court.

Richard Hoogendoorn, who coached Texas Wesleyan, was then enamored by Calaway’s combination of size, physicality and athleticism. He found his big man to patrol the paint for the Rams.

The young “Taker” would quickly became the team’s enforcer. He was strong but agile and relished the physical nature of the game. The bruising big man also had a decent touch from 15-18 feet. Hoogendoorn, years later, told some curious wrestling fans that Calaway could have easily earned a living playing pro basketball in Europe.

But unlike Kevin Nash, Mark Calaway didn’t hold on to his basketball aspirations for long. He dove headfirst into sports entertainment.

The two had some entertaining “fights” in the WWE at the peak of their careers. Had things been different, they could have been rivals on the basketball court rather than on the mat.

Glenn Jacobs is another WWE icon who has a hoops background. “Kane,” as he is popularly known in sports entertainment circles, enjoyed a basketball scholarship at Northeast Missouri State University, now called Truman State University.

Jacobs finished his career as the school’s career leader in field goal percentage and earned All-Conference honors. Unlike Kevin Nash, he finished his four-year basketball career and graduated with a degree in English literature.

Despite success on the hard court, Jacobs wanted to become an NFL player but failed the physical. Like Nash and Mark Calaway, they became icons of the WWE.