“He’s got to be ready. Everybody’s earning their minutes. Everybody’s earning their opportunities. So, you know, we’re gonna need everybody as we go through the season.” Mike Budenholzer said this after their win against Utah in regard to Jusuf Nurkic. Having adopted the starter role this season, things changed for the Bosnian after he got into an altercation with Naji Marshall. He was suspended for 3 games, an action that not only cost him $375,000 but also his spot. His absence allowed Budenholzer a chance to experiment, giving more time to players like rookie Mason Plumlee. Now, from the looks of things, the Suns boss will have to anyway depend on other starters for the foreseeable future.

Before the matchup between the Phoenix Suns and the Charlotte Hornets, Mike Budenholzer participated in a presser. This came a few hours after the injury report revealed that Jusuf Nurkic was ‘OUT’ from the matchup because of an illness. When asked about the same by a reporter, the head coach revealed, “Yeah no, he came in this morning not feeling well. We had the docs look at him, test him. He’s tested positive for flu. And so, you know, unfortunate, but part of getting through an NBA season.”

Suffering from a contagious illness like the flu, Budenholzer revealed that Nurk will most likely not join the team as they travel to other cities for games. However, the coach is optimistic that the player will join them at some point but at the earliest opportunity.

The update about Jusuf Nurkic’s health comes as the player has enveloped himself in a bit of off-court ‘drama’. The altercation with Naji Marshall was just one reason the Bosnian was in the news. He was also in talks, amidst rumors that he could be traded away before the February deadline. The Charlotte Hornets are reportedly the team with whom a deal may be finalized.

While nothing’s confirmed, a Nurkic trade and some draft capital may have the Suns also acquiring 25-year-old center Nick Richards. The trade buzz may have reached a new level over the last couple of hours. It was recently confirmed that Jusuf Nurkic had unfollowed both Kevin Durant and Devin Booker on Instagram. Such actions indicate a pattern, as seen in the case of players like Klay Thompson.

If the social media drama, the incident with Naji Marshall, and the changes in rotation weren’t enough, now the player’s further added to the Suns’ woes with his recent ailment. However, the same may not end up affecting Mike Budenholzer by much. After all, the head coach seems pretty content with the changes that he made for Jusuf Nurkic’s recent absence.

Mike Budenholzer believed that starting Mason Plumlee instead of Jusuf Nurkic was “good for us”

It is no secret that the Phoenix Suns have been struggling this season. They currently occupy the 11thseed on the Western Conference points chart in light of their 18-19 win record. Amidst this precarious condition of the team, a change was needed.

Mike Budenholzer found that when an opportunity presented itself amidst Jusuf Nurkic’s suspension. “Yeah, we went with Mason [Plumlee] and Oso [Ighodaro] again,” said Budenholzer in the aftermath of the win against the Utah Jazz. “They’ve been good for us. We’ll just continue trying to put together our best combinations.”

In their seven games since Nurkic’s ejection, the Suns went 3-4. However, after officially declaring Plumlee and Dunn as starters, they went 3-1! Furthermore, the team has been 2-0 in the games since Nurkic was fully benched.

In Jan, Plumlee has averaged 2.8 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 1.8 assists. The changes undeniably yielded some good results. Therefore, Budenholzer may take further advantage of Jusuf Nurkic’s absence to experiment more with the batch of younger players.

As the head coach highlighted, there’s no official update on when Nurkic will be returning. Given the trade rumors in which he is embroiled, Suns fans may be hoping they get to see the Center play one more game at least before he likely bids adieu to Phoenix!