Suns coach Mike Budenholzer breaks silence after Jusuf Nurkic’s shocking admission

Jusuf Nurkic's situation at the Suns tends to get worse after each match passes by, making the trade market deadline an interesting watch.

Suns coach Mike Budenholzer breaks silence after Jusuf Nurkic’s shocking admission

Jusuf Nurkic and Mike Budenholzer

From starting at center to battling for playing time, Jusuf Nurkic‘s status with the Phoenix Suns has rapidly changed, and his annoyance is clear. His move to the bench and his apparent lack of engagement with head coach Mike Budenholzer have caused a rift that has only grown as trade speculations surround him. In addition, Nurkic made his intentions clear regarding his relationship with Budenholzer.

Budenholzer and Nurkic haven’t spoken in two months, and Nurkic even went so far as to declare that the two “don’t have a relationship.” It makes sense that Budenholzer is giving matchups priority when several players are vying for the same number of minutes, but it also appears that Nurkic is in a difficult situation with no obvious solutions. However, Budenholzer also replied to Nurkic’s recent remarks about the Suns and his ‘playing time’ to the media.

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He hasn’t played, I’m sure he’s frustrated, so I respect that… Conversations have been had. There’s been communication….you gotta earn your minutes, and that’s been communicated.

Mike Budenholzer told media

Budenholzer has adhered to the “earn minutes” idea consistently. In addition to Budenholzer not playing him for three games overall, including Saturday, Nurkic missed four games. This was due to illness and had to recondition for two games. As a result, Nurkic hasn’t played since January 7.

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The Suns have reportedly been attempting to shop Nurkic as the trade deadline of February 6 draws near. There are several possible outcomes from this, but it’s obvious that Nurkic’s situation isn’t going well. All eyes will now shift onto the Nurkic situation going into the last weeks of the trade market deadline.

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Jusuf Nurkic’s replacement at center, Nick Richards continues to make an impact for the Suns

It looks like the Suns have already found their Jusuf Nurkic replacement. Nick Richards has been identified by the Suns as their starting center. Phoenix now boasts a younger, more athletic big man after acquiring him in a trade on January 15. He has delivered two double-doubles in his first four games, including this most recent one, which ended in a near 20–20.

Richards also opened up on his position on the roster. After the Suns’ matchup against the Washington Wizards, Nick Richards said, “In the 2nd game when I only had four, they told me, we brought you here for a reason.”

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Although there is still much space for improvement, he is offering the Suns more at the center position than Mason Plumlee, youngster Oso Ighodaro, and Nurkic did. Kevin Durant is pushing him to go after opponents low, but any points he gets out of the post are a bonus. Given that, his defense and rebounding are more important to the Suns than his scoring.