Little Quinn Clark, dressed in a hospital gown and hooked up to machines, didn’t have much to say when three Phoenix Suns basketball players walked into her room Friday.
But judging by the dimpled smile and the Suns T-shirt folded neatly on her hospital bed, the 10-year-old girl is a fan — just a shy one.
The NBA’s Most Valuable Player, Steve Nash, along with teammates Dijon Thompson and Brian Grant, paid a surprise visit to about 20 young patients at Banner Children’s Hospital in Mesa.
"This brightened up our day, huh?" mom Bobbie Lehnerd asked Quinn after the players posed for a Polaroid and autographed the shirt.
The players crowded into the small rooms and handed out Suns T-shirts, baseball caps, small blue teddy bears, children’s books and photographs to kids of all ages.
"It’s exciting when you put a smile on a person’s face," Thompson said.
While many kids were bashful and just plain not feeling well, their parents beamed at the celebrity attention.
"There’s some tall guys here," said an excited Barry Harkness into his cell phone in the hallway while the players visited with his daughter, Megan, 6. "I just had to call somebody."
Nash said this is one of the highlights of his job.
"We’ve met some really great kids," Nash said. "They are really brave. For us to come share time with them is exciting. If we made their day a little more fun for them, with all they are going through, then I am fortunate to do it."
