While outsiders might see the Phoenix Suns as only having the Bradley Beal situation on their radar, there’s been another one brewing. Recently, center Jusuf Nurkic and head coach Mike Budenholzer have had conflicting messages about their relationship with one other.
AZCentral’s Duane Rankin first reported Nurkic’s comments before Saturday’s 119-109 win against the Washington Wizards. Once again, Nurkic didn’t play. However, some other circumstances haven’t helped Nurkic receive playing time. For instance, the Suns swapped Josh Okogie for Nick Richards, and they’ve been reaping the rewards.
In the win, Richards had 20 points and 19 rebounds, bringing physicality and toughness to the interior that the Suns didn’t see much of with Nurkic this season. However, his slow exit from the rotation has the Suns big man getting real about his relationship with Budenholzer.
“We don’t have a relationship,” Nurkic said. “So, it’s fine. For me, just be a pro and do the best I can. Work and stay ready for whatever might be, but there is no chaos or bringing that to this team. They already have plenty of it. Trying to be as professional as I can and work my ass off for something else.”
Despite the abrupt transition, Phoenix has been quite consistent. They have an 8-3 record since the Suns benched Nurkic and Beal at the beginning of January. However, acquiring guys like Richards, in addition to Kevin Durant and Devin Booker, putting up gouging stat lines makes matters better.
Mike Budenholzer disagrees with Jusuf Nurkic’s take
On the flip side, the first-year Phoenix head coach wasn’t too big of a fan of Nurkic’s comments. After all, the Bosnian big man is having career lows in shooting percentage. He’s also been averaging an unhealthy amount of turnovers. Many of them are errant passes and avoidable mistakes.
Still, actions speak louder than words, and many were shocked when Budenholzer benched Nurkic. Although Phoenix was struggling, the move came out of left field. Suns Twitter had a field day over it and were rejoicing. While Budenholzer wasn’t like the fans running rampant on social media, he made a necessary adjustment.
However, following Saturday’s win, he responded to Nurkic’s claims and added some context to the situation.
“It’s never easy in this league,” Budenholzer said via Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Suns. “He hasn’t played. I’m sure he’s frustrated, so I respect that.”
Following that response, the head coach was asked if there had been talks between Nurkic and himself.
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