Phoenix Suns center Jusuf Nurkic is on pace to log zero minutes played in a regular season game for the first time in his Suns career when he’s not injured or serving a suspension.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Through the first two quarters of Phoenix’s Thursday night game against the Atlanta Hawks, Nurkic hasn’t left the bench. Rookie center Oso Ighodaro was the first big off the bench for the Suns. Phoenix is down 72-68 in the first half without Nurkic.
Oso Ighodaro is the first Suns big off the bench, subbing in over Nurk
— Gerald Bourguet (@GeraldBourguet) January 10, 2025
Nurkic has been in trade conversations alongside star teammate Bradley Beal for the better part of a disappointing 16-19 season heading into their matchup with the Hawks.
The much maligned big man is averaging 8.6 points and 9.2 rebounds on the year in 25 games played. Phoenix has made it known throughout the league that they are looking to trade Nurkic.
Much like their quest for trading Beal, the Suns’ coaching staff is taking an unconventional route of using diminishing the roles of players they are seeking to trade — they moved Beal to the bench just a few games ago along with the Bosnian big man in place of rookie Ryan Dunn and veteran center Mason Plumlee.
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Reporter Connor Moreno covers the Phoenix Suns for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account, @cmorenosports, and on Bluesky, @cloading.bsky.social
