Tough day at work for Jusuf Nurkic! Well, he has already been dealing with trade rumors, thanks to the significant decline in his performance from last season. And the big man might be looking at a hefty fine along with a lengthy suspension in the coming days for slapping Naji Marshall in the face during tonight’s Mavs encounter. To make matters worse, it looks like Nurkic has also lost support of the Suns fanbase because they were seen thanking Naji after his latest social media updates went viral.

After Nurkic’s slap, Naji retaliated by punching the Suns Center in the face. Although the hit did not connect completely, The Bosnian Beast hit the deck hard, mainly because of the push by PJ Washington. Moreover, Naji rubbed salt on Nurkic’s wounds after the game by updating his X banner to the screenshot of him punching the Suns Center.

He also posted several images of his bond with teammates Daniel Gafford and PJ Washington, who were also involved in the altercation. Well, it has only been a few months since Naji joined the Mavs. Sure enough, Dallas fans showered him with love after seeing him stand up for his teammates. But the surprising part is that his punch to Nurkic was also being celebrated by the Suns fans as Naji’s post was flooded with comments like “Thank you Naji! (Wish you clocked him fully) -Sincerely all Suns fans” and “Thank you for what you did tonight brother the whole city of Phoenix thanks you. Wish you connected on the punch but thank you again.”

Its clear from this reaction that Phoenix fans are done with Jusuf Nurkic and are craving change.

Suns fans troll Jusuf Nurkic after embarrassing act as Trade Rumors continue to escalate

Well, the celebration did not stop in Phoenix as more fans continued to thank Marshall, “Naji Marshall, suns fans appreciate you bro.” And this reaction left many netizens confused as one wrote, “I’ve never seen a fanbase celebrate their player getting beat up…” But why this animosity against Nurkic by his own team’s supporters?

Well, that’s because he is believed to be the weak link in what was initially expected to be a championship contending team. Yes, when Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal joined forces, it was the most lethal offensive trio on paper. However, the team’s lack of dominant presence inside the paint has limited their potential. Nurkic is averaging only 9 points, single digits for the first time since his sophomore season.

Moreover, there are also murmurs that the Suns want to trade him in pursuit of either Nikola Vucevic or Jonas Valanciunas. Obviously, both are sold big men, who would be a significant upgrade to replace Nurkic. That’s why the Suns fans are eager to get rid of the Bosnian star. One fan even slammed him by saying, “Nurk getting himself and 2 Mavs players ejected may be his best play of the season.”

Although that might be an overstatement, it shows how badly the Suns fans want him out of Phoenix. And Mat Ishbia will likely be looking to please his fans by trading Nurkic before the February deadline. What are your thoughts?