With Mike Budenholzer taking over as the Suns’ new head coach, he is still adjusting to the ways of The Valley. Although he has had a hot start to his tenure with three wins in four games, it looks like he is still not set on the lineup he wants to put on the floor. And we saw a glimpse of it tonight as he snubbed Jusuf Nurkic and replaced him with Mason Plumlee in the second half. Yes, the strategy led them to victory, but many believe that it could raise tensions in the locker room. However, Nurk nullified those speculations as Devin Booker vowed to rally behind the big man.

Despite being the starting Center, Nurkic played only fifteen minutes tonight and finished with merely 2 points. Talking about his reduced minutes after the game, he did not seem very bothered about Coach Bud’s decision, “Get a win man. That’s all it takes. Its gonna take some time to adjust to the system, minutes, rotation. So, ain’t no trouble in paradise. We’re here for the bigger goal. So, I understand it.”

Well, Nurk has struggled in both games against the Lakers so far. Last week, he had only 4 points and even then, Budenholzer played him lesser than his usual minutes. And the big man understands that it’s for the betterment of the team, “Nothing to worry about man. I’m a team first and we want to win. And that’s all we care about.”

Meanwhile, he has the support of his teammates as Booker said postgame, “I mean what is this year 10 for Nurk also? He understands what it is and you never want the weight when you play bad.” Obviously, Jusuf has been in this league long enough to know that players need to sacrifice in order to win. Moreover, Book has complete faith in his teammate, “He’s a competitor. So, he’s gonna come in and he’s gonna play better. And we’re gonna rally behind him and do what we need to do.” Meanwhile, Budenholzer stood by his decision.

Mike Budenholzer praises Mason Plumlee amid Jusuf Nurkic’s struggles

Now that the locker room worries are over, Coach Bud had no regrets about his decision of benching Nurkic in the second half, “There’s different versions of going with the hot hand. Defensively, energy and all those things, I thought Mason had a really big, positive impact on the game, so we kind of rolled with him.” Sure, Plumlee did not attempt even a single shot in the game and went scoreless. But he contributed by grabbing ten crucial rebounds and becoming the defensive anchor of the team.

This is only his first season in Phoenix and Mason is proving to be a great addition so far. Although not as a scorer, he has been contributing in other areas of the game consistently. Sure enough, Budenholzer had high praise for the backup Center, “Mason was great tonight.” And hopefully, once Nurk finds his groove back, they will combine to form a solid dual threat inside the paint and give the Suns more depth. What are your thoughts about Budenholzer’s decision?