Canada has only two players in the National Basketball Association, and Robert MacLeod of the Globe and Mail writes that it appears there's a rift between them over a basketball game.

Jamaal Magloire, the Toronto-born star of the New Orleans Hornets, is reported to be upset with the Phoenix Suns' Steve Nash, the league's most valuable player, because Nash is staging his charity all-star game in Toronto at the end of this month. Magloire thinks Toronto is his turf.

"Jamaal does a lot in Toronto for the community and he's really peeved that Steve got the game in the first place," said a person who did not want to be identified and who is close to the situation. "And he's also upset that Steve, at the very least, didn't call him in the early stages when the game was being put together just to give Jamaal the heads-up. It's just professional protocol."

Nash, who was raised in Victoria, told reporters in May that he was planning his first charity all-star game for the Air Canada Centre in Toronto on July 29. Stars such as Allen Iverson, Shawn Marion, Michael Finley and Chris Bosh have confirmed they will participate.

"The opportunity came to us so quickly that we had to make a decision on the spot in order to get everything rolling," said Jenny Miller, the executive director of the Steve Nash Foundation. "So the thought never crossed Steve's mind to reject it. And he's spent so much time in Toronto, certainly not as much as Jamaal. But he loves Toronto. So it was a nice fit for him as a way to give back."

Magloire, an NBA all-star two years ago, lives in Toronto in the off-season and is heavily involved in community work. He did little this week to deflect any notion he is upset by Nash's decision to hold his all-star charity event in the city.

"That's a tough question," Magloire said when asked about the rift. "It's hard to be disgruntled, because my mind is always on bigger and better things. It doesn't do you any good getting into disagreements with Nash, or a pissing match.

"They're going to do their thing and I'm going to do mine."