In this article, the combined magnetohydrodynamic heat, momentum and mass (species) transfer in external boundary layer flow of Casson nanofluid from an isothermal sphere surface with convective condition under an applied magnetic field is studied theoretically. The effects of Brownian motion and thermophoresis are incorporated in the model in the presence of both heat and nanoparticle mass transfer convective conditions. The governing partial differential equations (PDEs) are transformed into highly nonlinear, coupled, multi-degree non-similar partial differential equations consisting of the momentum, energy and concentration equations via appropriate non-similarity transformations. These transformed conservation equations are solved subject to appropriate boundary conditions with a second order accurate finite difference method of the implicit type. The influences of the emerging parameters i.e. magnetic parameter (M), Buoyancy ratio parameter (N), Casson fluid parameter (β), Brownian motion parameter (Nb) and thermophoresis parameter (Nt), Lewis number (Le), Prandtl number (Pr) and thermal slip (ST) on velocity, temperature and nano-particle concentration distributions is illustrated graphically and interpreted at length. Increasing viscoplastic (Casson) parameter decelerates the flow and also decreases thermal and nano-particle concentration. Increasing Brownian motion accelerates the flow and enhances temperatures whereas it reduces nanoparticle concentration boundary layer thickness. Increasing thermophoretic parameter increasing momentum (hydrodynamic) boundary layer thickness and nanoparticle boundary layer thickness whereas it reduces thermal boundary layer thickness. Increasing magnetohydrodynamic body force parameter decelerates the flow whereas it enhances temperature and nano-particle (species) concentrations. The study is relevant to enrobing processes for electric-conductive nano-materials, of potential use in aerospace and other industries. © 2019 A. Subba Rao et al., published by De Gruyter 2019.